The Twelve Pokemon of Christmas
by DragonQuillZ
Summary: It's almost Christmas in Kanto and Misty is in for a surprise. She's about to receive some very special gifts from an anonymous suitor!Can our favourite Gym Leader and some old friends figure out who he is? Stay tuned to this Christmas Adventure for more!
1. Chapter 1

**AN: I've been meaning to do a story like this for ages and so this year I finally got off my lazy behind and started it... I dedicate this fic to LiliNeko *^-^*!**

**Anyway, I hope you are all enjoying the Holidays and don't forget to review!**

**The Twelve Pokemon of Christmas**

It's Christmas time in Kanto and at the Cerulean City Gym, life is extremely busy for the residents of our favourite water pokemon gym. Daisy, Lily and Violet are currently setting up for their Christmas water show while Misty is finishing up some year end reports in the office.

"This is gonna be, like, our greatest show ever!" cried Lily from the side of the pool.

"I know," responded Daisy, "We are totally awesome!" Some of the pokemon around the pool just shook their heads at their owners behaviour, they were used to this by now.

Violet was just about to add her own exclamation of joy and awesomeness when she noticed a group heading towards them.

"Hi there, welcome to the Cerulean Gym, can we like help you with something?"

It was a very strange group she noticed now that she got a good look of them, a man and woman in some sort of weird(and totally unfashionable) uniform and then a Meowth and a Delibird.

"Yes," said the bossy looking woman, "We're looking for the redhead twerp-" she was suddenly cut off by the man who jumped ahead of her.

"Um yes, we're looking for Misty Waterflower."

"She's in the office right now doing some boring reports," replied Daisy who came over to greet their guests, "I'll go fetch her for you." She then proceeded to turn around and yell, "Lily go get Misty!"

"Hey! I thought you said you were, like, going to fetch her!"

"I am! By me telling you to get her..."

Lily sighed and left to call Misty, mumbling something about the cruelty of only being the second oldest.

Meanwhile, up in the office, seventeen year old Misty was finishing up her reports to be filed to the Kanto Pokemon League before they close for Christmas. It's been a tough few years for Misty who had basically been running the gym on her own. Sure she loves her sisters but admittedly, they weren't the best at paperwork or battling and on top of their water shows, Daisy's film career and Lily and Violet's modelling, she had come to accept that she was the best sister for the role of gym leader. She smiled suddenly as she signed off the end of the report. Both the gym and herself had thrived recently and she had gained quite the reputation as the beautiful yet tough gym leader and had turned the Cascade badge from what was once a guaranteed badge(she still can't believe her sisters used to just had them out) to a badge that was now looked upon with awe and fully appreciated by trainers everywhere. Yes, for young Misty, life was good...

"Oh Misty honey...! There's some people downstairs who wanna see you!" shrieked Lily from the other side of the door. Misty sighed and got up, pulled her long red hair into a low ponytail, stretched and followed Lily downstairs.

"Did they say what they want?" she asked as they reached the entrance foyer.

"Oh right, we forgot to ask..."

"Of course..." Misty sighed. 'They are such airheads sometimes...'

Misty and Lily entered the pool area and were met by the sight of the visitors edging away from Daisy and Violet who were doing and impromptu scene from their upcoming show to entertain them.

"Make it stop..." muttered the woman whose left eye began to visibly twitch. Misty let out a nervous laugh and approached them.

"Hi. I'm Misty Waterflower, Cerulean Gym Leader, how can I help you?"

The visitors spun around and Misty leapt back in shock.

"You... You... Team Rocket!" she managed to gasp out.

"Hey can't you read? Does those look like Rocket uniforms to you? We quit that gig ages ago!" Meowth screamed at her and pointed at Jessie and James. Misty stopped and stared at their uniforms. Meowth was right. While they still resembled their old Team Rocket gear, it wasn't the traditional white she was used to. Instead it was a light orange colour and in place of the infamous red R were two blue J's.

"Oh..." said Misty who still looked quite confused. "Um okay then... So what's with the Delibird?" she asked once she noticed the red and white bird sitting at their feet.

"Oh he was a wedding gift from Nanny and Pop-Pop once they found out we quit Team Rocket and were starting our own business." James politely explained. Now that was a surprise. Who knew Jessie and James could be completely reformed and gotten married AND had their own business?

"Oh well congratulations!" said Misty. 'This is beyond weird' she thought.

"So what can I do for you?"

The foursome suddenly jumped into a formation of poses and began to speak, or rather, recite.

'This looks awfully familiar...' thought Misty as they began their highly original presentation.

"Prepare for presents, packages and gifts"

"And make it double our deliveries are swift"

"To protect the world from devastation"

"To unite all peoples of every nation"

"To spread the wonders of truth and love"

"To extend our message to the stars above"

"Jessie!"

"James!"

"The Jessie&James Delivery Service! We deliver at the speed of light!"

"Call us now, we operate through the day and night!"

"Meowth, that's right!"

"Delibird!"

"..." said the residents of the gym.

Coming out of her initial shock and contemplating what she had actually heard, Misty's first response was, "Wow..."

"See Meowth? I told you the motto was fabulous, she loves it!" shrieked Jessie. Meowth looked at James and the two of them just shrugged.

"Back to business," said Jessie suddenly turning back to Misty, "We have a special delivery for you."

At the word "delivery", her sisters suddenly perked up and ran over to them in excitement.

"Oh my gosh! I _love_ presents!" squealed Violet.

"Like yah! What is it?" added Lily.

"Can it sisters!" said Meowth cutting into the sisters joy, "This here package is addressed to her only! Get yer claws away!"

They shrunk back in fear, resigning to watch from the sidelines. Misty looked up then in confusion. She hadn't ordered anything and wasn't expecting anything. 'What could it be?' she wondered. "Fine," she said suddenly, "where do I sign?"

The trio grinned suddenly as Delibird carefully pulled out a small green chest with a red bow on it. She could hear the "Oooh's" coming from her sisters behind her and reached for the chest but before she could lay a finger on it, Delibird pulled it back.

"Na uh uh..." said Jessie, waving her finger at her, "We've got very specific instructions here."

"Like we said," added James, "This is a special delivery"

"And by special" piped up Meowth, "We mean musical!"

Before Misty could react again, Meowth pulled out a CD player that started playing a vaguely familiar Christmas carol tune and the four of them lined up and began to sing.

"On the first day of Christmas my true love gave to me...!" the group paused.

Delibird then thrust the chest towards her indicating she must open it. Tentatively she opened it and there, on a bed of velvet was a Pokeball. She looked up in confusion as her sisters appeared over her shoulders to get a look.

"Well Misty? What are you waiting for? Let's see what it is then!" demanded Daisy.

Misty picked the ball up and looked back up at the former Team Rocket who were still frozen in place, waiting for her to do something.

'Okay well here goes...'

"Pokeball go!" As the red light shot out onto the floor before her, the trio suddenly unfroze and continued their song as the light began to take shape.

"A Piplup in a Pokeball...!"

"Piplup!" came a cry from the floor and they all looked down to see the small penguin-like pokemon with a fluffy light blue body, a small yellow beak and big shining eyes.

A big "Awwwwwwwwwww...!" ran through the gym as they all got a good look at the little fluff ball. Misty smiled and bent down to Piplups level. "Hi there. I guess I'm your new trainer."

"Piplup!" it cried again and took a few wobbly steps towards her and began jumping up and down.

Misty's Marill, who had evolved from her Azurill, walked over then from the pool and began jumping up and down with the new addition to the family.

"Aw... that is just adorable!" said Lily.

Misty then turned to Jessie, James, Meowth and Delibird. "Can you tell me who sent it?" she asked.

"Weren't you, like, listening Misty?" said Daisy, "It's from your true love!"

Misty glared at her oldest sister.

"Yes, I heard that! Now I want to know who that is!"

"Sorry," said James cautiously, "We're under contract not to reveal who the sender is."

Misty sighed. She had absolutely no idea who would send her such a gift.

"Do you have, like, a secret boyfriend Misty?" asked Violet. "How could you keep something like that from us! We're your sisters!"

"I do NOT have a boyfriend!" she screamed back.

"Anyway...!" screamed Jessie getting the attention back on her. "You, Misty, will be receiving visits from us for the next eleven days as the song goes," she continued, "so that means your last gift will be on Christmas Eve so I advise you not to go anywhere because I will not be chasing your tail around trying to do my job!" Jessies friendly warning was met with a stare.

Meowth gave a nervous laugh then remembering that Misty had a fire breathing Gyarados.

"Come on Jes, we gots other deliveries to make!"

Jessie suddenly smiled sweetly and followed him out. "You're right Meowth. Toodle-loo!" She sang as they exited the gym with Delibird and James bringing up the rear.

"See you tomorrow!" waved James and Delibird.

"Bye! And thanks!" replied Misty and she turned away from their departing figures to look at her new pokemon who was still happily playing with Marill.

She really began to wonder exactly who on earth this person was. Her sisters, meanwhile, were having a full on debate.

"I bet it's that kid Georgio!" said Daisy as Misty tuned into their conversation. "Remember when he sent her that note asking her out on a date?"

"Maybe it's Tracey," giggled Lily, "He does spend an awful lot of time around here!"

They all began to giggle at the thought of Tracey as Misty's true love while she resisted the urge to blast them with a Water Gun attack.

"Well whoever it is," sighed Violet, "He's still so romantic..." and all three sighed at the thought of being in Misty's place.

Misty however, had picked up Piplup and Marill and took them to get Piplup acquainted with all the other pokemon and as she walked away, she couldn't help but feel just a little bit of excitement at the thought of what the next day might bring.

**AN2: I hope you enjoyed day one! Don't forget to leave a review! =D**

**Oh and I've been watching re-runs of Pokemon Chronicles online and got a strange thought : Does anyone else think that Georgio is little bit of combo of Gary and Misty? Just a thought... Oh well, Happy Holidays! =D**

**~DQ**


	2. Chapter 2

**The Twelve Pokemon of Christmas**

**On the second day...**

Misty covered her eyes from the glare of the sun as she opened the gym's front door. She had gotten up extra early today in her, well hidden, excitement. She had a happy smile on her face this morning as she went into the main area to feed the pokemon. None of the pokemon at the Cerulean Gym stayed in their pokeballs unless they were being transported or unless they wanted to and so sometimes travellers or residents of the city would just drop by and admire them in the water like at an aquarium. As soon as she entered with the buckets of special water pokemon food from Professor Oak, Psyduck, Marill and Piplup all walked and hopped towards her.

"Morning guys," greeted Misty as she set the buckets down.

"Marill!" replied Marill who promptly jumped into her arms. Misty gave him a hug then set him down again.

"Why don't you go and wake the others up while I make breakfast?" she asked him.

Marill nodded and dived into the pool to awake the pokemon still asleep underwater. Misty then bent down to greet Piplup.

"Good morning Piplup, did you sleep all right last night?"

Piplup looked at her and nodded happily and her smile grew. Piplup was settling in to its' new home well and looked like it was going to be really happy with her.

Meanwhile, Psyduck had decided to help himself to some of the food and had his head in one of the buckets.

"Psyduck get out of there!" Psyduck jumped back up in surprise and fear and promptly fell backwards into the pool with a cry.

"Psyiyiyiyiyiyiyiyiyiyiyiyiyi!"

Misty sighed and was about to turn around and fetch the net when he was suddenly thrown back out. Luckily Dewgong, who was heading up to get some food, saw him flailing and head butted him out to safety.

"Hahahahahahahahahaha! Wow that's one scene that never gets old."

Misty spun around at the sound of the familiar voice and was met with the sight of a very familiar face.

"Tracey! When did you get here?" she cried and went over to give her old friend a hug.

He grinned, "A few minutes ago. I was surprised to see the door open so early so I let myself in."

"Here, let me give you some help with that," he added as he noticed the buckets of food behind her.

It was Misty's turn to grin. "Doesn't Professor Oak give you enough chores to do? Sometimes I think the only reason you come to visit us is to do work."

He smiled sheepishly and laughed, "Well after years of doing Daisy, Lily and Violet's chores I'm kind of used to it."

"Okay then. Here," she said, handing him a bucket, "You take the right and I'll take the left. That way we'll be done faster and we can catch up."

Misty went over to feed Gyarados and Dewgong and Tracey went to feed Psyduck and Marill, who had come over to greet him. Soon, all the pokemon had been happily fed and returned to the depths of the pools to spend their day. It was then that Tracey noticed something distinctly different that was definitely not there the last time he visited, which wasn't that long ago.

"Wow Misty," he began, "Where did you get a Piplup from?"

"We were, like, hoping you could tell us that Tracey," said Daisy as she entered.

"Oh hi Daisy," said Tracey, "Well, from what I can recall from Professor Oak, Piplup are generally found in cold climates around the sea shore and they are one of the starter pokemon from the Sinnoh region."

Daisy let out a dramatic sigh, "Oh we were wrong then... It's not meant to be Tracey, you're not her true love!" She sounded slightly disappointed which worried Misty.

"'True love?' What are you talking about Daisy?" Tracey was very confused.

"Oh it's totally romantic!" began Daisy as she recounted the events of the previous day to him.

"Wow!" said Tracey, "Looks like you're going to be receiving a lot of pokemon over the next few days! Who do you think it is?"

Misty sighed, "I have no idea and James said that they weren't allowed to tell me."

"Well me, Violet and Lily thought it was you Tracey but I guess we have to think again."

Tracey stared at her in shock and then looked at Misty who was rolling her eyes at her eldest sister.

"Why would you think it was me?" he asked, "No offence Misty but you're one of my best friends and I'm kind of dating someone else..."

"None taken Tracey, you don't have to explain yourself to me. But... If I may ask, who is the lucky lady?" She grinned as a faint blush appeared on his cheeks.

"Well..." he began, "I've kind of been dating Officer Jenny..."

Misty giggled and decided to tease him a bit more, "Well Brock has Nurse Joy and now you have Officer Jenny. I guess now we know who to call now if we're in any trouble."

Tracey let out a nervous laugh, "So Daisy where are Lily and Violet anyway?" he asked, not trying to change the topic at all.

"Oh they'll be back later. Violet's at the salon and Lily's at the mall."

"And why aren't you with them?" asked Misty.

"Well _someone_ had to stay in case those delivery people arrived early. They told me call them if they arrive while they're out and we know you wouldn't have called us."

Tracey laughed and Misty sighed in exasperation.

"Oh that reminds me," said Misty, turning to Tracey, "I forgot to ask, what brings you to Cerulean City Tracey?"

"Oh yes, Daisy called and offered me tickets for their latest show and Professor Oak overheard and told me to take them and that he and Mrs Ketchum wouldn't mind going along as well so he sent me up to reserve our seats," he explained, "I did ask Jenny but she had to go to Viridian City to help out her fourth cousin. "

"Right... Well you can all stay here, we've got plenty of room."

"Thanks," he smiled, "I'm actually glad I'm here early. I also want to see what your admirer sends you next."

Tracey, Daisy, Lily and Violet needn't have worried about missing the next delivery. It was well after lunch when the former Team Rocket arrived in the foyer.

"Hello again!" called Jessie as they walked into the pool area. "Are you anxious to receive your next token of love?" she teased.

'YES!' Misty screamed in her head and so it was with great restraint that she coolly replied, "Well let's see what you have for me today."

Meowth got out the CD player and got in line next to James.

"You know the drill!" he said and pressed play.

"On the second day of Christmas, my true love gave to me..."

Delibird handed Misty the chest and this time there were two pokeballs in it.

"Come on Misty!" shrieked her sisters in the background.

"Pokeball, I choose you!" she cried as she let them both go. Again, as the red lights began to take two quite large shapes, Jessie, James and Meowth continued.

"Two majestic Milotic!"

"Milotic!" came the melodic voices of the two pokemon that appeared before them.

A long "Wow..." resounded from them all as they looked at the beautiful creatures.

"Wow," said Tracey recovering first. "Misty, not only have you got two of the most beautiful pokemon," he began in awe, "But you've also got a male and a female!"

He was right of course. They most certainly were a beautiful couple and Misty was stunned. Who on earth would send her something so rare and beautiful? 

"I feel..." murmured Jessie suddenly. "I feel so calm..."

"That's right," continued Tracey, "Milotic are very peaceful and calming pokemon and are known to make humans feel relaxed and soothed."

Misty was still in shock as the female Milotic floated towards her and rubbed her head affectionately against her face. She couldn't help but smile warmly at the beautiful pokemon and she reached out her hand at petted the male who had also floated over.

"So kid, do youse have any idea who your love boid is?" asked Meowth.

"Nope," she replied. "You're still not going to give me any clues?"

"That's right!" replied James. "Well then, we'll see you tomorrow."

"Bye and thanks," called Misty as they left. She turned and saw her sisters gushing at the beauty of her new Milotic and Tracey with his sketch pad out trying to capture their beauty as fast as possible as though they might disappear.

"They really are beautiful aren't they?" she said softly.

"Psy?" Psyduck appeared next to her and she looked at one of her oldest pokemon.

"Who do you think is sending me these unbelievable gifts Psyduck?"

He looked at her. "Psyduck?"

She smiled at him and walked towards her sisters who were introducing the Milotics to their new home. 'Well,' she thought, 'Now I really have to find out who this is all from. It's time to make a call...'

**End Day Two**

**AN: Well I hope you enjoyed day two! This has gotten plenty of hits for chapter one, lets see if we can keep that up for chapter two :) Who do you think she's gonna call? Oh and I really hate time zones so I have no idea when some of you are reading this... I plan on posting a chapter a day so I hope it's getting across like that... If not... Oh well... Don't forget to review and let me know what you all think!**

**~DQ**


	3. Chapter 3

**Disclaimer : Completely forgot about this... I do not own or claim ownership of Pokemon and all it's characters... We can all thank the great Satoshi Tajiri for creating this world.**

**The Twelve Pokemon of Christmas**

**On the Third day...**

Kanto Pokemon Advanced Tech – Midday

A vid-phone in one of the Seniors dormitories began to ring and a Chansey started jumping up and down to get her trainers attention.  
"Chansey!" she sang while pointing to it. Her trainer suddenly appeared and picked up the phone, giving Chansey a rewarding pat of thanks.

Misty's face appeared in the screen and her image showed her smile brightly from her end.

"Hi Brock!"

Brock smiled at the enthusiastic greeting from one of his oldest and best friends who he come to think of as a sister over the many years.

"Hi Misty!" he greeted. "How's it going?"

Before she could respond however, a familiar face appeared, taking up most of the screen.

"Are you talking to Brock Misty? Why didn't you tell me you were calling him? Hi Brock!" said Tracey cheerfully as he waved animatedly to him.

"Hey Tracey!" Brock laughed as he noticed Misty's not so discreet death glare being directed towards the Pokemon Watcher as he tried to politely wrench the receiver away from her.

"Do you _mind_ Tracey? I'm trying to have a conversation here!" came her scream on Brock's end. Tracey gave a nervous laugh and said, "Um, I'll chat to you some other time Brock..." and proceeded to run away.

Brock grinned as Misty sighed. "So Misty... You're quite busy at the gym I see. Are you enjoying entertaining your visitors?"

"You have no idea," she muttered. "Yes Tracey arrived yesterday to reserve seats for himself, Professor Oak and Mrs Ketchum for my sisters' new water show," she explained. "We invited them all to stay over and the other two should be arriving sometime this week."

"Oh yes I heard about that. Joy told me it was going to be really good this year," said Brock.

"That's what I hear too," she said with a roll of her eyes, "Anyway, that's not why I called."

"Oh?" Brock, now curious as to the nature of the surprise call continued, "So to what do I owe this pleasure?"

"Well..." she trailed off and looked down, not quite knowing how to explain her situation to him.

"Yes...?" he prompted helpfully, leaning forward.

"Brock," she began, looking up again having found her words, "You wouldn't happen to know anything about a series of gifts that are currently being delivered to me would you?"

A thoughtful expression appeared on his face as he scratched his chin. "Nope, not at all. Gifts you say? What kind of gifts?"

Brock noted the slight blush that appeared on his friends cheeks as she explained the events of the past two days to him.

"And so you see," she continued, "I need to find out who he is."

"Well," he began, "I'm sorry I can't be of any help to you... But I can tell you that this guy must be pretty serious if he's sending you specifically Water Pokemon."

"Well thanks anyway Brock. Take care," said Misty somewhat despondently with a slightly disappointed look.

"Oh wait Misty!" he cried suddenly as a thought occurred to him.

"Yes?" came her response with an eager expression.

"Um, well..." he began, "I've just finished packing because term ended today and, well, my family in Pewter have sort of gone on a holiday cruise so I was wondering if maybe Joy and I could come stay over at the gym for the show?"

"Oh..." said Misty whose shoulders, he could see, sagged. "Sure that's no problem at all," she smiled. "We'd love to have you."

He let out a sigh of relief, "Thanks Misty! Oh and I'll also get to see all your new pokemon!"

"Right..." she said with a shake of her head.

"Don't worry," he added with a smile, "As soon as I get there I'll help you figure this out. See you tomorrow!"

Misty smiled happily at the screen, "Thanks Brock! See you tomorrow!" and then the screen went blank.

As Brock put down the receiver, he looked at Chansey and Croagunk, who appeared ready to go, with a thoughtful expression on his face.

"Well guys," he began. "If my suspicions are right then I think I know exactly who Misty's admirer is!"

"Chansey!" cried the pokemon joyfully at the sound of a romance in the air while Croagunk just looked indifferent.

"Yes... We shouldn't say anything yet though... I'll just observe at the gym for more clues to confirm my suspicions..."

And with that, Brock returned his two pokemon to their pokeballs and got ready to fetch Joy and head to Cerulean City.

Meanwhile, Back at the Cerulean Gym:

Misty put the receiver down and sighed(she seemed to be doing a lot of that lately). It looked like Brock didn't have any leads for her. 'It will be nice to see him again though,' she thought. Brock was taking his studying at Advanced Tech very seriously and so she hadn't seen very much of him lately. She had no doubt that when he graduates he was going to be en excellent Pokemon Doctor, 'especially with Nurse Joy helping him out' she smiled at the thought.

Her thoughts were suddenly disturbed by a loud, "Pidgeotto! Pidgeotto! Pidgeotto!" as the clock behind her struck one. 'I better head to the pool. Team Rocket will be arriving soon.'

The pools looked incredibly lively when Misty entered and she sat down next to Tracey who was enjoying the sights of all the pokemon interacting. It was perfectly understandable to Misty that they were also experiencing excitement at meeting new friends. All the pokemon got along extremely well together and Misty smiled warmly at the sight of Psyduck in his ring floating along happily with Marill and Piplup. Tracey's Azumarill, she noticed, was also with them, seemingly getting reacquainted with it's child. The two Milotic seemed to be getting along surprisingly well with Gyarados and when she voiced this to Tracey, he agreed. "I bet it's because of their natural calming ability that they are drawn to him while other pokemon are generally afraid of them."

Misty looked around suddenly when she noticed a distinct lack of three voices.

"Hey Tracey," she started, "Where's my sisters?"

"Oh don't worry they're still here," he replied. "They're in your office reworking their script for the show to add in the Milotics."

She should have guessed.

No sooner did she turn her head back to the pools did the voices of Jessie, James, Meowth and Delibird reach her ears as they skipped towards them. Her sisters too had suddenly appeared out of no where and were now looking eagerly at the former Team Rocket.

"Good afternoon..." trilled Jessie as she sprung before them. "Ready for round three?"

"You better be," added James, jumping into his spot beside her. "This one's a treat!"

"Here we go!" cried Meowth as he hit play.

"On the third day of Christmas my true love gave to me..."

This time, without any hesitation, Misty released the three pokeballs Delibird gave her.

"Oooh!" cried Lily as the three red lights shot over to the water and began to form two large shapes and a slightly smaller one.

"Three Lapras leaping!"

"Lapras!" sang the three Lapras coming into full view. Daisy, Lily and Violet began to squeal in delight and gush at the "adorableness" of the Lapras. Misty got up and walked over to the pool side to greet her new pokemon. They appeared to be a little family and she too couldn't help but let out a nice long "Aw...", along with Jessie and James, as she petted them. The two adults began to sing happily as they swam around pool. Tracey was sketching the two when he noticed the baby wasn't swimming with them. Apparently Daisy had noticed that too and exclaimed, "Hey! Where did the little guy go?"

"Yeouch!" screeched Meowth suddenly and they all turned to see the baby Lapras holding Meowth up by his tail and then, without warning, the little Lapras tossed Meowth onto his back and began zooming across the pool singing in joy.

"HEY! Slow down crazy Lapras! Do I looks like one of yer chew toys? I don't like water! Jessie! James! HELP!" he cried.

Of course the most Jessie and James could do was hold onto each other for support as they laughed and so Delibird flew over and plucked Meowth of the Lapras and dropped him to safety. Misty could have sworn she saw the little guy pout before it went to investigate Psyduck and crew.

James wiped a few stray tears from his eyes before turning to Misty. "We better get going before Lapras decided to take Meowth for round two."

"What! Oh no, I'm outta here!" screamed Meowth and away he ran with Jessie running behind him. "Meowth quit being such a baby! At least it wasn't trying to eat you!"

"See you tomorrow!" Misty waved to James and Delibird as they left.

She turned back to the pool where her sisters were introducing themselves to the Lapras while Tracey continued to sketch. She smiled at the scene and began to think about the sender. 'He must be a really sweet guy if he made sure to capture the whole family so no one would be abandoned.' She knew from personal experience that Lapras travelled in pods and got really sad and upset when separated from their families. She thought back to what Brock said about the guy being really serious and she felt inclined to agree. Suddenly, she found herself rather looking forward to tomorrow...

**AN: There we go, chapter 3! I hope you guys are still enjoying this! Let me know what you think! Did you enjoy Brocks POV? Catch ya later!**

**~DQ**


	4. Chapter 4

**The Twelve Pokemon of Christmas**

**On the fourth day...**

It was around ten in the morning when Brock and Joy arrived at the Cerulean Gym. The journey from the Advanced Pokemon Tech school didn't take all that long seeing as it was situated between Viridian and Cerulean City. Misty greeted them in the foyer with a big smile.

"Brock!" she exclaimed happily and gave her old friend a tight.

"Hi Misty..." Brock managed to gasp out, massaging his ribs when she released him. "That's some grip you've got."

She stuck her tongue out at him and moved to greet Nurse Joy. "Hi!" she began, "It's so great to finally meet you. Brock's told me so much about you."

Joy smiled at her. "Oh but Misty, we've already met. Don't you remember me?"

"Err... Um.. Uh..." she stuttered looking to Brock for help. He was occupied with thoroughly inspecting the wall next to him with great interest.

"I believe we met in Viridian City a long time ago." said Joy with a helpful tone.

"Oh yes of course..." said Misty nervously. Joy continued, "And my first cousin actually runs the pokemon centre here."

"Yes, yes, it all makes sense now! Come, let me show you to your rooms!" said Misty, hastily turning and motioning towards the stairs.

"Oh didn't Brock tell you?" said Joy. "I'll be staying with my cousin while we're here to catch up. Our other cousin from Ecruteak City is here as well so it's a bit like a mini reunion. I just stopped by with Brock to say hi and thank you for the tickets."

"Oh it was no problem," said Misty, "Have a nice time!" she added as Joy turned to leave.

"Thanks again Misty!" she waved back. "Bye honey!" she added to Brock.

"See you later!" he called back. They watched her leave for a few moments before Misty turned back and walked up the stairs with Brock trailing behind her.

"So how's the studying been going for you Doc Brock?" asked Misty as they made their way to the many guest rooms. Brock laughed. "Oh it's been great! I can finally graduate next year and get to work."

"Wow that's great!" Misty exclaimed. "Where will you be going next?"

"Well immediately after I graduate, I'm heading back to Pewter City to visit my family and my pokemon and then I'm going to be helping Professor Oak out with all the pokemon at the ranch."

"That sounds good... But what about Joy?" Misty asked curiously.

"They're actually setting up a pokemon centre in Pallet next year so she's going to be transferring there because they need an experienced Nurse to get the place up and running." he explained.

"Well Brock," Misty smiled up at him, "I'm really glad everything is working out for you."

"Thanks Misty. Don't worry, things will work out okay for you too." he grinned. "I'm pretty sure you have nothing to worry about with your Christmas Romeo."

Misty was about to respond when a door suddenly flew open and Tracey jumped out excitedly.

"Hey Brock! I thought I heard your voice!" he practically screamed. 'This feels like deja vu...' thought Misty, shaking her head at Tracey's enthusiasm to see Brock again.

"Hi Tracey! Yeah I'm going to be staying for a while." Brock replied.

'Hmm...' thought Misty as an idea occurred to her. "Hey Brock, you can room with Tracey, there's two beds in there and you guys can bond seeing as you're gonna be colleagues soon."

"Sure I don't mind, we have a lot to catch up on too," said Brock with a wink in Tracey's direction. Tracey however, was looking puzzled, "Colleagues?" he said in confusion, looking at Brock. "Yeah, I'll just leave you boys to it then." she said and left Brock and Tracey to catch up. The two had gotten to be good friends seeing as they had similar personalities. In the meantime, she was going to the pool area to do some training with her new friends.

When she got there however, it appeared that she wouldn't be getting any training done today. She was met with quite the scene. One of the Lapras was giving Lily a ride around the pool while she squealed with joy, Violet was teaching the two Milotic to do some sort of dance it seemed and Daisy, it appeared, was introducing Luverin and Caserin to Piplup, who was regarding the two Luvdisc curiously. She was about to turn and leave her sisters to their devices when the voices of Jessie, James, Meowth and Delibird singing reached her ears. Apparently her sister's heard it too as they halted their activities and rushed over. Tracey and Brock had also decided to make their way down at the same time and so they all waited for the next delivery.

"Oooh!" squealed Jessie as she saw the group. "Our audience is growing! My melodic singing voice and astounding dance moves must be attracting more people!" She clasped her hands to her chest as she no doubt began to envision herself on some great stage in her head.

"Yes... Whatever you say dear," said James while Meowth and Delibird just rolled their eyes.

"Wow!" said Brock. "You really weren't kidding about Team Rocket being reformed!" he said to Misty. That snapped Jessie out of her daydream. "Do you have a _problem _with that?" she asked menacingly, her hands visibly forming fists as she took a step closer to him. Brock took a brave step back and held up his hands. "No no no of course not! I, er, am looking forward to seeing your performance!"

Jessie smirked but before she could say anything else Meowth stepped in. "Enough already, we gots a job ta do!"

James pulled Jessie back in line before she could lash out again and shot them an apologetic look before motioning to Meowth and Delibird to begin.

"On the fourth day of Christmas my true love gave to me..."

Misty thanked Delibird and let the four pokeballs go. This time she aimed the beams straight at the pool.

"Four Vaporous Vaporeon!" they sang.

The group turned to the pool but there was nothing to see. "Huh?" came the puzzled voices of her sisters. "Don't worry," she reassured her sisters, "They're there all right. Vaporeon have the ability to 'melt' into water. It's a wild adaptation." No sooner had she said that did four blue heads appear on the surface of the pool. "Vaporeon!" they cried happily, clearly enjoying the water. One of them got out, stretched it's smooth body and walked towards Misty to introduce itself. She bent down and stroked it's head and the others got out to join it.

"You seem to know a lot about Vaporeon Misty," said Tracey over her sisters excited chatter. "Yeah of course I do. They've always been my favourite Eeveelution and I've always wanted and Eevee to train." she replied.

"Oh I remember!" added Brock. "I remember you mentioning that when we used to travel but whenever we would come across a stray Eevee, it would turn out to be lost and belonging to someone else like with that kid Mikey and the Battling Eevee Brothers."

Misty rolled her eyes but smiled at the memory. "This is awesome! They look really young and I think they're newly evolved." she said. "I just can't believe it."

"Well," said Brock. "It's pretty clear that this guy really likes you Misty."

"Yeah!" added Tracey. "He's already sent you ten pokemon!"

She looked up at the Delivery Squad who were getting ready to leave again. "You sure you guys can't give me any hints at all?" she pleaded, giving all four of them a desperate look.

"Sorry kid," said Jessie with the tiniest hint of sympathy. "No can do. We have a code to uphold. No James!" she added quickly as she noticed his trembling lip just about bursting to say something. And with that she grabbed his arm and left with Meowth and Delibird waving goodbye.

"Hmm..." began Tracey suddenly as the Vaporeon shot back into the pool to explore their new home. "This is quite a variety of pokemon," the Watcher noted. "Each of the four breeds are from a different region. The only thing they have in common would be that they are Water pokemon."

"Hey, you're right!" said Brock, fully agreeing with him. "Piplup I believe are from the Sinnoh area, Lapras from the Orange Islands. Milotic from Hoenn and now Vaporeon from here in Kanto."

'They're right,' thought Misty. 'Looks like this guy really knows his stuff.' They stood in silence for a while just observing the pokemon playing while Daisy, Violet and Lily ran off to the office.

'I think I should tell Tracey my suspicions and get his input... He might have more evidence for me,' was what was running through Brocks head.

'Hmm... ' thought Tracey, 'I have a strange feeling I might know this guy...'

Meanwhile Misty was trying her hardest to fight off the urge to grin like an idiot and jump up and down like her sisters. It was getting harder for her to fight her genetic predispositions for situations like this and restrained herself until she was in the privacy of her own room to do so.

'I still can't believe this is happening!' she mentally squealed. 'Ho-oh knows why anyone would even like me let alone go to such lengths for me... I just can't wait for tomorrow!'

And so the three of them stood, each too enraptured with their own thoughts, to do anything else for time being...

**AN: Well we're a third of the way there! How's it looking so far? Anyone want to guess what the next pokemon is going to be? Oh and a shout out to whoever can tell me another situation where Misty found a lost Eevee! Hmm... My traffic page seems to be frozen because it doesn't correspond to my e-mail... Lets hope it gets fixed soon. Ah well, till tomorrow then!**

**~DQ**


	5. Chapter 5

**AN : Before we get started... A shout out too... tim29842003 for being the first to get it right and then to LightningStar 0.o and xDaughter-of-the-Sunx who also got it! Great job guys and now... Here we go!**

**Disclaimer : I don't own any of it... Although we all wish we owned the Pokemon World, it all belongs to Mr. Satoshi Tajiri. **

**The Twelve Pokemon of Christmas**

**On the fifth day...**

Misty woke up bright and early the next morning ready to face the day. The gym was closed for battles for the holidays and as usual, she found herself missing the action of facing new challenges. She was dressed in her usual pool friendly attire as she went down to breakfast. When she arrived in the kitchen, she was first greeted by the delicious smell of breakfast on the stove before she Brock in an apron next to it.

"Mmm... Brock that smells great! Do you need any help?" she asked as she sat down at the table. He grinned and expertly flipped a pancake before he replied. "No thanks Misty. It's the least I can do for you letting me stay here."

"You better watch out," she said as she buttered a piece of toast. "Once my sisters get a taste of your cooking, they might not let you leave!"

"Hmm... That might not be so bad!" he said as his mind began to wonder.

A dishcloth suddenly hit him on the face. "Hey! Watch it Loverboy," she said in a dangerous tone. "I don't think Joy would be too happy to hear that." She left the warning hanging in the air.

"Heh heh heh..." laughed Brock nervously as distant memories of mallets came to him and a familiar ache in his left ear suddenly hit him.

"I was just joking Misty... No need to take everything so seriously... Here have some tea!"

Misty poured herself a cup of tea and sipped it slowly as fond memories of a teenage Brock cooking over a fire came to her. He really was like the older brother she always wanted. Tracey dragged himself into the kitchen a few moments later as Brock began to plate up.

"Morning Tracey," said Misty, piling food onto her plate.

"Morning Misty," he yawned. "Wow Brock this food looks and smells great!" he added taking a plate of his own.

"Thanks." smiled Brock sitting himself down. The trio ate in silence for a bit before Brock looked at Misty and asked, "When do your sisters get up?"

She looked up from her plate and rolled her eyes. "Oh don't worry about them," she said. "They'll be up soon. They just have to get through their morning beauty regimes before they come down."

"Of course..."

"So," said Tracey suddenly, "What are your plans for today Brock?"

"Oh I'll be here all day," Brock said to the Watcher. "I'm meeting Joy for dinner with her cousins."

"Really?" said Misty. "Why don't you spend the day with her? It can get boring hanging around the gym all day." She asked curiously. "Ask Tracey. He gets so bored he does chores!"

"Hey! I don't do chores because I'm bored!" he said defensively. "I just like to be helpful."

"Sure." said Misty with yet another roll of her eyes.

"Don't listen to her Brock. It's not boring at all."

"Oh I know. I just want to get a closer look at all the pokemon here. You know I'm going to be a Doctor soon so I thought I would check them all out. And you've got a couple of pokemon I'd _really_ like to get a closer look at."

Tracey was nodding with satisfaction when a thought suddenly hit Misty over the head like a frying pan.

"Hang on... I know what you're doing! You two just want to hang around all day so you don't miss the next delivery!" She couldn't believe these guys. They were acting just like her sisters.

"Oh come on Misty..." came Brocks whining voice. "You can't deny me the opportunity to see it! Tracey's already seen three!"

"Hey!" piped up Tracey. "That's just because I got here early!"

She sighed and got up to wash her dishes. "All right fine. Do what you want... If you need me, I'll be by the pool doing some training."

As soon as she was well out of earshot in the main area, Brock and Tracey put their heads together and began to talk with conspiratorial tones.

"So," began Brock, "Have you given any thought to my suspicions?" Tracey's expression grew thoughtful as he responded. "Yes. A lot actually and I think you're right." A wide grin spread across Brock's face. "Really?"

"Well..." Tracey began. "When I actually thought about it, a lot of incidences over the past two or three years suddenly made perfect sense. I mean I haven't seen much of the guy lately and now with this it explains everything!"

Brock leaned back in his chair and crossed his arms. "So what do we do now? Try to get in contact with him then confront him?" Tracey scratched his chin thoughtfully. "No I don't think we can do that." He turned his gaze to the window. "No. He clearly has his reasons for being anonymous. And there's also the tiny chance that we're reading way too deep into things and have the wrong guy..."

Brocks slumped in the chair slightly at the lack of action. "Well one things for sure..." he began.

"We can't tell Misty." Tracey finished for him.

The two young men in their early twenties sighed simultaneously when Tracey suddenly sat up. "Oh wait! I know what we can do!"

Brock leaned forward, eagerness shining in his eyes. "What?" Tracey looked at him seriously before continuing. "It's not much but it might give us further confirmation. Professor Oak will be here in a few days. If anyone knows what goes on in that guys head it's him."

"You're right!" exclaimed Brock. "Professor Oak always knows what he's up to. So for now we just wait and watch."

Tracey nodded. "We wait and watch." And the two fell into a comfortable silence as they finished their breakfast.

By the early afternoon, Misty had had a very productive day. Brock and Tracey opted to assist her sisters with their planning for the day and so she was free to train the pokemon without any interruptions. From the new residents, it appeared that the Milotics and the two older Lapras preferred not to battle so she made note of that and also made sure to inform her sisters that they seemed to prefer the dancing and performing they were introduced to yesterday. The Vaporeon and young Lapras were very eager to exercise and show of their skills in the water so she had a lot of fun having mini battles with them. Piplup was still very young and would need the most training so she made sure he was happy at his current level and opted to take it slow with the starter pokemon. She also made sure all the other older pokemon were happy with their new friends as well. Marill, Politoed, Corsola, Staryu, Starmie, Gyarados, the Goldeens, the Seakings, Kingdra, the Shellders, Wartortle, Dewgong, the Luvdiscs and Psyduck were all perfectly content.

She had just decided to do some relaxing when Brock, Tracey, Daisy, Lily and Violet appeared. She leaned against the stands as she watched them approach her. "So are you guys all set for the show?"

"Oh yeah!" squealed Violet with a little air punch to emphasise her excitement. "We're totally ready! These guys just refined a few of our ideas..."

"Good thing too," added Brock looking at Misty. "If we hadn't stepped in I guarantee you wouldn't have been very happy with some of the things they had planned." Tracey eyed Brock wearily as he recalled one of the more dangerous ideas they came across. 'Tights...' he mentally shuddered.

Brock was about to add something else when the sound of voices singing reached them. The Delivery Squad(as Misty aptly renamed them) appeared and James' continued to sing.

"Picture a scene:

A forest of green,

A blue shutter cottage of grey...

It doesn't look right

Without a blanket of white

And a light brown Stantler

pulling a bright red sleigh!"

He was about to continue with the next verse of the song when Meowth hit him over the head. "Can it Jimmy we're done with that song!"

James pouted slightly before stepping back in line next to Jessie who looked bored.

"Let's just get this over with, my feet are killing me!"

"Delibird!" the bird pokemon added looking as worn out as Jessie. Misty looked sympathetic. "It's okay, you don't have to sing."

Jessie looked horrified. "What!" she screeched. "I will never disappoint my fans! Through good times and bad, through sickness and in health I will always sing!" she declared to them all.

"Those sound suspiciously like our wedding vows," muttered James to Meowth. Before Jessie could continue, Meowth hastily pressed play.

"On the fifth day of Christmas, my true love gave to me..."

Again Misty released the five pokeballs into the water and they all watched the lights form five figures.

"Five bouncing Buizel!"

"Buizel!" the sea weasels cried as they splashed about happily in the water. Misty smiled at their behaviour and went up to welcome them. One of them jumped out and licked the side of her face in affection and she laughed. She got up and turned to her Delivery Squad to thank them but found that they were already gone.'

"Wow!" said Brock who had bent down next to her to greet the Buizels. "They're really friendly!" Her sisters began to squeal again and began to chatter away with wild hand gestures in the Buizels direction.

Tracey had somehow already managed to get a good sketch of all five of them and had put his sketch book aside. "Hey look." he gestured towards the pool. "They've already made friends." He was right. Misty turned back to the pool and saw the Buizels and the Vaporeons playing what appeared to be tag.

"They're absolutely adorable!" Misty openly gushed. "I remember a boy using one of these in a battle a while back. It was a good strategy, using his Buizel to distract me with it's cuteness for a moment but it turned out to be quite tough."

"Did you win?" asked Tracey. Misty gave him a look that basically said "are you really asking me that?". Tracey didn't get the message.

"Of course I won! I'm not the Gym Leader for nothing you know. I said I was distracted for only a moment."

Brock laughed while Tracey apologised. "So what do you think Misty? Buizel are found in the Sinnoh Region."

Misty looked wistful for a moment. "This is one of the things I miss most about travelling sometimes." She looked at all the pokemon playing in the pool. "Sometimes I really miss all the travelling and discovering new pokemon. Now the only time I get to see something new is when a trainer surprises me or when Professor Oak calls to show me something."

Brock and Tracey exchanged looks while she continued. "Don't get me wrong I love being here. This is where I belong but there's always that feeling for adventure you know?" She turned to the guys. "I guess that's why I'm enjoying this so much. This guy is bringing some of the places I couldn't go to here to me. Everyday there's something new and exciting and to me this just feels really special that someone has gone to all this effort..." she trailed of. Misty shook her head then and smiled before going to the other end of the pool where the Buizel were playing. Brock and Tracey exchanged another look and nodded to each other, the same thought going through their minds, 'Yeah, this just got a bit more interesting...'

**AN: And so we end day five! Wow so what did you all think of this one? Share your thoughts! Here's another little proposition for you : a shout out to the first person who can give me the name of the song James was singing...**

**Looking forward to hearing from you! See you in the morrow =D**

**~DQ **


	6. Chapter 6

**AN: Okay then, a shout out goes to LightningStar 0.o for being the first one to get the song title correct! For those who didn't get it, it was 'Winter is the Coolest Time of Year' from the 'Pokemon Christmas Bash' Album. Now onward chapter!**

**The Twelve Pokemon of Christmas**

**On the sixth day...**

On the outskirts of Cerulean City :

A trio of young travellers were making their way to the city this morning to visit some old friends. They had tried to be disciplined and get enough sleep for the early start the next day but unfortunately, they failed and so they were dragging themselves through the forest in exhaustion. To strangers, they looked like quite a strange group : two early teenage girls and a pre teen boy. It so happened that the boy and the older of the girls were siblings while the two girls were travelling partners. The eleven year old boy yawned for the umpteenth time before his sister snapped.

"Max stop yawning!" she screamed, coming to a halt.

"I'm tired May!" Max screamed back. "If _someone_ had bothered to check the time last night, we wouldn't be so beat!"

Before fourteen year old May could respond, the other girl cut in. "Oh cut it out you guys... It's way too early for this..." said thirteen year old Dawn. She was trying to neaten her hair as they walked.

"You're right Dawn. Come on we're almost there! The sooner we get there, the sooner we can rest." exclaimed May with a burst of energy that only lasted for a few steps.

"I can't wait!" said Dawn, happily addressing May. "I've heard the Sensational Sisters water shows are awesome!"

"I know!" replied May with as much enthusiasm she could muster. "I've never been to Cerulean City before."

"So then how do you know where we're going?" Dawn asked with a worried expression.

"Oh I don't," May began, "but Max does. He called Tracey, that's Professor Oaks' assistant, and asked for directions."

"That's a relief! Are you also excited to see the show?" Dawn asked Max who was checking the map as they walked.

"As if!" he exclaimed, looking up. "I'm a pokemon trainer and one day I'm going to be the Gym Leader of the Petalburg Gym! I don't get excited to see pokemon shows." Max returned his gaze to the map and slowly walked on.

"So then why on earth are you coming with us?" asked Dawn in confusion. May giggled and nudged Dawn. "He's just coming to see Misty." she whispered.

"Aw...! Does Max have a crush on Misty?" whispered Dawn back excitedly.

"Hey I can hear you you know!" Max screamed and turned around. "I do _not_ have a crush on Misty! I just want to see her Gym. She's ranked the number one Gym Leader in Kanto you know." The young boy huffed in annoyance and turned back to the trail.

The girls giggled and walked on behind him. "I can't wait to meet her." said Dawn. "I've heard so much about her. She sounds like an amazing person."

"Oh she is," added May. "I've only met her a couple of times a few years ago but in those few days I was definitely impressed." she said in a voice full of admiration for the older girl.

Max was about to turn around to tell them that they had arrived in Cerulean City when he suddenly bumped into a tall figure in a long coat and a hat.

"Oh! I'm sorry sir." said Max politely looking up at the young man whose face was obscured by the glaring sunlight.

"No problem," the young man muttered and continued on away from the group. The trio watched him disappear amongst the trees.

"Hmm..." said Dawn thoughtfully. "That guy seemed familiar. I didn't see his face but I have a feeling I know him..."

"How could you?" asked May. "You've never been to Cerulean City before and he didn't look like a traveller."

"I guess you're right." Dawn replied with a shake of her head. May was about to say something else when Max cut in, remembering why he stopped in the first place.

"It doesn't matter now anyway, we're here!" he exclaimed motioning to the buildings. The girls squealed in excitement and the trio began to make their way excitedly to the Cerulean Gym.

Meanwhile, back at the Gym:

The sunlight was streaming through the gym windows and so everyone was hanging around the pool. Misty watched as her sisters danced with some of the pokemon, having decided to take a break from their show planning. Tracey was sketching the Vaporeon and Buizel splashing about and having fun while Brock had decided to take up the impossible task of teaching Psyduck to swim.

"Come on Psyduck, you can do it!" Brock urged the duck on as he took a few steps towards the edge of the pool. Brock was in the water trying to get Psyduck to feel more secure. Misty watched in amusement as Brock began to ease Psyduck into the water, fully aware of the most certain outcome of Brocks' project.

"There you go doesn't that feel nice?" he said cheerfully as he began to let go of Psyduck. Psyduck blinked and then -

"Psyiyiyiyiyiyiyiyiyiyiyi!" He screeched and began to flail about frantically as Brock tried to get a hold of him. The young Lapras suddenly appeared and head butted the frantic Psyduck out of the pool before swimming away as Misty laughed at the sight of Brock drenched from Psyduck's splashing. Tracey heard the laughter and soon joined in as he saw Brock dragging himself out of the pool.

"I tried to warn you but did you listen? No... 'I'm a Doctor, I can help him!'" Tracey mocked as Brock dried himself off.

"Hey I was just trying to help!" Brock defended. Misty gave Psyduck a few treats to placate him and patted his head. "Oh it's all right Brock," she said with a smile. "I'm used to this now. It doesn't even matter that he still can't swim because one of the other pokemon always help him out when he falls in. It's one of his many character traits that just grows on you after a while."

"I'm curious though," said Brock while towelling his hair. "Do you ever battle with him? He was always such a wild card back in the day."

Misty laughed and watched as Psyduck waddled away to where Piplup and Marill were. "Oh he still is! The challengers don't know what to do when he appears and neither do I so I just go with it." she explained. "Once I won all three rounds in a three on three battle with him!" she added somewhat proudly. "I guess if his headache is bad enough he produces some pretty powerful moves."

Brock and Tracey nodded thoughtfully when suddenly they all heard a voice calling as it approached. "Hello? Is anyone home?" Max called as he, May and Dawn came into view.

"Max, May, Dawn!" Brock exclaimed in surprise as the young group made their way towards them. "Hi guys!" greeted May happily. Dawn stepped towards Misty and held her hand out eagerly to the older(and taller) girl. "Hi! I'm Dawn, it's great to finally meet the famous Misty Waterflower!"

Misty looked surprised and shook the younger girls hand. "Well... I don't know about famous but it's nice to meet you too Dawn."

"Hi I'm Tracey," greeted Tracey politely while Dawn continued to shake Misty's hand. "Nice to meet you Tracey!" she replied.

Dawn released Misty's hand was about to say something else when Daisy, Lily and Violet appeared to greet their new guests. "Oh my gosh!" she squealed in excitement, looking up at the sisters in glee. "The Sensational Sisters! I am such a huge fan of your work!"

Daisy, Lily and Violet looked overjoyed. "It's always so awesome to meet fans!" said Daisy happily.

Misty turned to the others while Lily and Violet added their own comments. "May, Max. It's great to see you guys. I didn't know you were coming!" Tracey rubbed the back of his neck sheepishly. "Uh, that would be my fault... Max called yesterday for directions but I guess I forgot during the excitement." She rewarded Tracey a glare for neglecting to mention more guests while Brock laughed. "So what brings you guys to Cerulean?" asked Brock.

"Dawn and I wanted to see the water show and Max here wanted to see Misty." she replied with a wink.

"Oh? You wanted to see me Max?" Misty addressed the boy she had once helped cope with being a younger sibling.

"I wanted to see your Gym!" he exclaimed defensively while May laughed at him. He ignored his sister and continued. "I didn't get to hear much about it last time and now that I'm a trainer and they wanted to see the show I decided this was the perfect opportunity to see the number one ranked gym in the Indigo League!"

Misty nodded and smiled. She was glad the gym had such a great reputation all the way in Hoenn. "Well, you guys are welcome here any time."

"So Max, how's the training going? And May, you and Dawn conquering the Hoenn Contests?" Brock asked.

"It's going great!" Max responded happily while pulling out a badge box. "I've already got three Johto badges!"

"The contests are great!" added May. "Dawn and I make a great team!"

Max was looking around the gym in awe. It really was an amazing place. He had never seen a gym like it before. His gaze turned to the pool. "Wow! Look at all these water pokemon!" he exclaimed. May and Dawn, who had returned to the conversation, turned to look at them too. "Wow!" said May and Dawn simultaneously.

"This is amazing!" said Max. "I've never seen such a variety like this under one roof before!"

Tracey laughed at that. "Well there should be some more variety arriving in a bit."

"What do you mean?" came May's puzzled voice. Daisy, Lily and Violet suddenly cut in before Tracey could respond. "Oh it's only the most romantic thing ever!" said Violet. "Misty's got like a secret admirer that's sending her pokemon everyday!" added Lily. "It's so sweet! He's sending her water pokemon according to the 'Twelve Pokemon of Christmas' song!" The girls(except Misty) all sighed at the romantic gesture.

"That's so romantic!" sighed Dawn wistfully.

"I know..." came May's equally wistful sigh. "I wish someone would do that for me!" Brock laughed at the two young girls. "Maybe one day when you're older," he said consolingly.

"Hey look!" said Tracey suddenly motioning to the side. "They've arrived!" They all turned to see the Delivery Squad skip into the room.

"See James? I told you we were getting more fans!" came Jessie's shrill voice.

"Of course Jess! I never doubted you!" was James' reassuring reply. Meowth then piped up. "Why they all gotta be twoips though?"

They would have been offended had they not been so excited. Misty was caught up in the groups excitement. "So what have you guys got for me today?"

The four got in line and with out any further ado began their song.

"On the sixth day of Christmas, my true love gave to me..."

Misty grabbed the six pokeballs from Delibird and released them into the pool with everyone's eyes eagerly staring as the lights took shape.

"Six Wooper whooping!"

"Wooper!" the six blue pokemon cried happily as they floated in the water.

"Wow a whole school of Wooper!" said Max excitedly. "Aw they're so cute!" came the voices of Misty's sisters and Dawn and May.

"Well," said Brock. "I guess we can add Johto to the list. What do you think?" When Tracey didn't immediately reply Brock turned and saw the Watcher on the floor sketching away. He turned to Misty and addressed the question to her.

"What do you think Misty?"

"I think they're really sweet," she said and smiled back at the six happy faces.

"Well," said Jessie suddenly looking at Misty. "We're halfway there now. Any thoughts?"

Misty looked at her and shrugged. She was at a loss here. "Good!" was Jessies reply and with that, she grabbed James and skipped back out with Meowth and Delibird running behind them. While Dawn and May continued to gush with her sisters at the situation and Max, Brock and Tracey discussed the abilities of the Wooper, Misty sat at the edge of the pool and looked at the Wooper who she notoriously remembered for being generally oblivious.

"I don't suppose any of you can tell me who sent you?" she asked them quietly. "Wooper!" came their replies as they shook their heads and dived under the water to explore. Misty sighed. Jessie was right, they were halfway through and she was still no closer to figuring it out...

'Who is it?'

**AN: **Halfway point! What do you think? The Gym is getting fuller and fuller so what do you think of these guests? More to come soon so stay tuned and don't forget to drop your thoughts by!

~DQ


	7. Chapter 7

**The Twelve Pokemon of Christmas**

**On the Seventh day...**

Misty was actually enjoying having so many guests at the gym. After she had completed her daily duties and made sure her sisters weren't doing anything too ridiculous, she settled down by the pool for a day of reminiscing and story sharing with Tracey, Brock, Max, May and Dawn. It was great laughing with Brock and Tracey about their past adventures as trainers and hearing about the lives of pokemon Co-ordinators from May and Dawn and giving Max some tips about being a beginner trainer on the road. She missed being so carefree and just being around old and new friends. They sat like that for a while, even having a picnic for lunch around the pool with Daisy, Lily and Violet joining and just hung out like carefree young adults and teenagers.

Misty, Daisy and Tracey were halfway through telling a story about the Luvdisc at Dawn's prompting when the sound of bells reached their ears. The group turned towards the sound and were met by the sight of Meowth with a Santa hat on, complete with bells on the end, that tinkled as he walked. Delibird skipped beside him and Jessie and James marched in, arm-in-arm, a few moments later.

"Greetings!" said Jessie with a flutter or her hand. "How are our favourite twerps today?" The group sweat dropped while Misty just laughed and shook her head.

"We're great Jessie." she answered politely while the others stared at James trying to adjust Meowth's hat in the background.

"Just tilt it a bit more to the left Meowth, it looks better that way!"

"Hey get yer paws off me! Don't make me use my Fury Swipes! Back off!" screeched Meowth batting James' hand away. Delibird just stood to the side and shook his head at their antics. Jessie didn't just stand back though and promptly screamed, "Knock it off you two!"

The two stopped immediately and Jessie turned back to Misty who had stood up for their delivery.

"Well then," the authoritative woman continued. "It's been a week now, how are you liking this experience?" she asked in a very professional tone.

"Well, um..." Misty began, choosing her words carefully so as to not upset Jessie. "It's been a very enjoyable experience thus far and your performances have been the highlight of my day." she said seriously.

Jessie grinned at her. "Good answer kid." And the two former enemies nodded in understanding. Jessie fell back in line with the others and Meowth whipped out the CD player for the seventh time and hit play.

"On the seventh day of Christmas, my true love gave to me..."

Misty watched as her friends and sisters leaned forward anxiously as they watched the seven red lights take shape.

"Seven Spheal a-smiling!"

The seven round, plush, blue furred pokemon came into view. "Spheal!" they cried happily and began to clap with pleasure. Misty bent down to greet them with a smile and the Spheal clapped harder having met their new trainer.

"Aw...!" came her sisters voices. "They're adorable!" they gushed and watched as the Spheal made their way to the icy area where Dewgong and Seel resided. Max and May watched as Tracey sketched them while Dawn took out her Pokedex and directed it at them.

"Spheal, the Clap Pokemon. Spheal moves more quickly by rolling than by walking. They are sometimes known to cross oceans atop icebergs."

"Wow!" she exclaimed and watched as they rolled along the ice and splashed into the water.

"Let's get going," said James suddenly. "We're free all day!"

"Oh yeah!" added Meowth. "Let's get outta here, I hear ders an all you can eat buffet at the mall!"

"Oooh food!" cried James happily and grabbed Meowth and Delibird and ran off. Jessie sighed dramatically and followed after them muttering about dysfunctional families.

Meanwhile, Misty was trying to think. She watched as her sisters, Dawn and May played with the pokemon and the boys discussed their interactions or something. She sighed. This place was a bit too crowded for her to gather her thoughts. She casually edged out of the room to avoid detection and left a note at the front desk saying she was going for a walk.

Somewhere in Cerulean City...

She had been walking for a while trying to collect her thoughts and feelings from the past week. She sat down at the edge of the fountain and absorbed some of the sunlight when a dark figure suddenly blocked the sun. Misty lifted her gaze and jumped in surprise.

"Jessie? What are you doing here? Aren't you supposed to be at the mall with the others?"

Jessie huffed in annoyance. "Those imbeciles are still eating at the buffet. I wanted to do some shopping and there's a nice boutique over there," she motioned to the left before continuing, "The clothes there are perfect for my supermodel figure."

"Right..." was the only response Misty could come up with. She was surprised again when Jessie sat down next to her.

"So what's got you all down twer- Misty?" she asked somewhat awkwardly. Misty sighed again and looked at the older woman. "I just don't know what to think or feel any more about this situation..."

"Oh?" prompted Jessie. Misty was reluctant to just start spilling her heart out to a woman who used to attack her with huge mechas and trick her into falling into holes. But then again, she needed to confide in someone and Jessie was a very straight talker.

"Like you said," she began. "It's been a week and I still haven't gotten my head around this whole thing. It's been pretty overwhelming."

Jessie nodded for her to continue. "At first it was really exciting and all but now it's got me thinking, who would do all of this for me?"

Jessie rolled her eyes. "Oh yes. It's absolutely awful being serenaded with gifts." was her sarcastic supply. She looked at the younger girl who had her head down.

"No... But I just don't get why anyone would go to such lengths for _me_." said Misty in a small voice.

Jessie sighed. The kid just had to get all insecure on her.

"Listen," she started cautiously, "I don't care what your idiot sisters have been telling you over the years but you have nothing to be afraid of."

Misty lifted her head and looked at her.

"I know for a fact that this guy has real feelings for you and has no ulterior motives. Trust me, I'm an expert at hidden agendas and this guy is genuine. And just because you didn't join the stupid family business doesn't mean your worth anything less no matter what those idiots have told you in the past."

Misty stared as Jessie continued. "When you love someone, you'll do anything to see them happy and to express your love to them in a way only they will get."

"Is that why you always shout at James?" Misty asked curiously.

Jessie blushed and looked away. "Sort of, but that fool needs someone to look out for him and no matter how much I scream and no matter what I make him endure, I know that he's always going to be there because I know he puts up with it because he loves me." she trailed off quietly.

Misty nodded as she took in what Jessie had said.

Jessie looked up at her again and asked in her normal commanding tone, "So be straight with me now, who do you think it is?"

Misty avoided her stare. "Well... I know who I'd like it to be but I don't know... It's been a while since I've last seen him so I don't even know if he feels the same about me."

"I take it you haven't told anyone?" observed Jessie.

"Of course not!" came Misty's shrill reply.

Jessie laughed and they got up at the same time. Misty smiled at the woman she was starting to regard as a friend. "Thanks a lot Jessie. This really helped."

"Don't mention it," Jessie said. "Ever." she added just to make it clear. Misty laughed and nodded and they said their goodbyes for the day. As she walked back to the gym, she felt lighter having now cleared her head of all the insecurities. She was going to face the next five days boldly, she resolved, and(hopefully) face the man who had brought so much cheer into her life, soon.

**AN: An attempt to write Misty's feelings and do something slightly deeper and have a bit of Jessie/ Misty bonding. They're two of my favourite characters and I've always thought they could have one day become friends... Anyway, back to normality next chapter and we're getting closer to the end! Let me know what you think!**

**~DQ**


	8. Chapter 8

Disclaimer: I keep forgetting about this thing... Maybe that's because I know my name is not Satoshi Tajiri and I am completely aware of the fact that I do not own Pokemon...

**The Twelve Pokemon of Christmas**

**On the eighth day...**

Misty was met with a surprise as she went to feed the pokemon the next morning. As she entered the main pool area, Max jumped out from behind the stands.

"Morning Misty!" the young Trainer greeted happily.

"Good Morning Max," she returned looking surprised to see him there. "What are you doing up so early?" she asked.

"Oh I was wondering if I could maybe help you feed the pokemon." he stated. "I slept through it yesterday."

"Oh you don't have to do that..." she began but was cut off. "It's the least I can do for you and your sisters letting us stay here... And I get to see all of your pokemon!"

Misty shrugged and headed towards the food store room. "Okay then follow me."

'Why do guests always insist on doing work here?' she wondered as she handed Max two buckets of food.

Together they fed all the pokemon with Max occasionally asking questions and making comments. They were at that for a while before Misty put the buckets back and stretched while Max examined Psyduck who was looking at him in extreme confusion. Max looked up at Misty and opened his mouth to ask her something when she held up her hand and halted his question. "Please," she began, "Don't ask...Psyduck is just _really_ special..."

"Psy?"

Max laughed while Misty just sighed and then smiled.

"So Max," she began. "You just came from Johto right?"

"Yeah! It was great!" he replied enthusiastically. "I'm hoping to get into the Silver Conference."

Misty nodded. "Ah yes I remember that... So how is your training going? I remember there being a lot of interesting pokemon in Johto."

Max nodded. "Do you wanna see them? I've already caught a few."

"How about you show me all your pokemon?" asked Misty.

"Okay!" came his enthusiastic reply. He reached for his belt and removed six pokeballs.

"I choose you!" he cried as he released them all.

Six figures began to materialise before their eyes. Max smiled as his pokemon began to materialise and introduced Misty to them one by one.

"This is Treecko, he's who I got from Professor Birch when I started my journey." Misty nodded at the cool looking green pokemon and watched as he took in his surroundings.

"This is Ralts! I met him along time ago and I promised I would return and take him with me when I was old enough to be a trainer and we've been together since." Misty smiled as Ralts and Max hugged.

Max continued. "I left some of my pokemon back at home before I went to Johto so these are who I've caught so far."

"This is Chikorita, Murkrow, Donphan and - "

"Spinarak!"

"Yeah that's right!" said Max who turned and jumped when he saw Misty's terrified face. "Spinarak..." she mumbled and began to back away. It was then that Max suddenly remembered that Misty wasn't exactly a fan of Bug-type pokemon.

"Uh, Spinarak return!" he called and watched as Misty slumped against the wall. "Sorry Misty I forgot... Are you okay?"

"Yeah..." Misty mumbled with embarrassment, getting to her feet. "I'm sorry Max... That's the one thing I've never gotten over. Bug pokemon." she shuddered.

"I don't get that. You have a fire breathing Gyarados!" he exclaimed.

"Actually I used to be terrified of Gyarados but that's a story for another time." she said. "I don't know, Bug pokemon always just creep me out... Apologise to Spinarak for me, it takes a while for me to get used to them."

"Okay then," said Max, prepared to drop the subject for now. Max then went on to explain to Misty where, when and how he had caught his pokemon before he returned them to their pokeballs.

"Here's a tip for you Max," said Misty looking at the young Trainer. "When you get to Azalea Town, go and visit a man named Kurt. He's a Poke Ball Expert and he gave me this." She opened a cupboard and pulled out a turquoise and red poke ball. She leaned forward and handed him the ball.

"Wow is that a Lure ball?" he asked, fascinated by it.

"Yeah that's right. I'm not surprised you haven't seen it. Last time I used it, we were a bit preoccupied..."

"What do you mean?" asked Max, looking up from the ball in his hands.

"This is Corsola's Pokeball," she said. "I used it to capture Corsola on the Whirl Islands."

"Wow..." said Max in awe.

"I think you'd be really interested in what he has to say. I learnt a lot about Poke Balls from him." Misty added.

"I'll definitely be going there!" said Max, full of enthusiasm, handing her back the Lure Ball. "Thanks for the tip Misty."

Misty smiled at the young boy who was so eager to learn about pokemon. "You're welcome Max. I know you're going to be a great Gym Leader one day. Come on, lets go get lunch with the others."

Max visibly blushed and followed Misty to the kitchen where the rest of the crowd was.

Brock, it appeared, was playing head chef in the kitchen and was ordering Tracey about much to the amusement of the girls who were sitting around the table.

"Come on Tracey, chop those onions!" Brock yelled at his room mate. "I'm chopping, I'm chopping!" cried Tracey, literally, with tears streaming down his face.

Misty and Max sat down at the table and tuned into the current conversation.

"Hi Misty!" greeted May and Dawn enthusiastically turning to her.

"We've just been hearing all about the planning for the water show! It sounds really amazing." said May. Misty nodded and replied, "They've told me it's going to be great too... I haven't actually heard all the details yet though I usually just wait until I hear a scream before they let me help them with the pokemon."

At the questioning stares she continued, "They should know by now that Gyarados does not like to dance..."

The trio laughed and Dawn added, "Well I know it's going to be fantastic!" Misty smiled at the younger girl and nodded. "Yeah somehow they always pull it off."

Dawn nodded eagerly. "And we can't wait to see you perform Misty!"

Misty nodded before she suddenly whipped her head around.

"What! Perform?" she shrieked, jumping to her feet.

Daisy, Lily and Violet suddenly strutted into the kitchen. "Oh hey Misty! Did I hear you say perform? Perfect! We'll have no problem adding you to the script!" said Daisy.

"Like, it's no problem at all..." added Lily. "If you just asked in the first place we would have gladly let you in the cast from the beginning."

"Totally!" piped up Violet. "Really we're just so happy you volunteered!"

"Yeah!" the three of them cheered and each did an air punch.

Misty was suddenly feeling very frustrated and was having the strangest sense of deja vu.

"Hey!" she yelled. "I did NOT say I was performing!"

"But Misty..." began Lily. "We've already added you to the script..."

"So change it then! You've been doing that all week!" she cried.

"But like, we've already been advertising you so we can't change any of the actual characters..." said Violet.

"Advertising?" Misty asked carefully. "How long have you been advertising me in this show?" She saw movement out of the corner of her eye and turned to see May examining her show ticket. She walked over to the girl and looked at it. There, printed very clearly on most of the cardboard, was a picture of a mermaid with distinctly red hair.

Misty turned her glare to her sisters. "You want me to be the Mermaid?"

"Oh but Misty you were so good last time!" whined Daisy. "Come on, it's Christmas!"

"Yeah Misty, Christmas is, like, the time for family and we're your family!" added Lily.

"And as your family we beg you to help us out. It's only one night!" came Violets pleading voice.

Her sisters looked at her with big, shiny, tear filled eyes and she sighed. "Fine..." she mumbled with resignation.

"Yeah!" they screamed in joy, tears miraculously vanishing before turning and strutting back out the kitchen.

"We can always get our baby sister to do what we want!" They high five-d each other, running off before Misty could change her mind. She sat down and put her head in her hands.

"Why do they always do this to me..." she groaned.

"Oh come on Misty," came Brocks encouraging voice. "Your last performance was brilliant. The show was a total sell out that day!"

Misty looked up at Brock before letting her head fall back onto her arms on the table. "Brock that was like six years ago!" came her mumbled moan.

"At least they gave you more warning this time." he said optimistically.

She rolled her eyes. "Yeah sure, who knows when they would have told me if Dawn hadn't had mentioned it."

"Thanks for that," she nodded to the younger girl gratefully before she collapsed back in her seat. "Oh why does this always happen to me...?"

Tracey and Brock rolled their eyes.

"Oh cheer up Misty..." said Brock calmly, "At least you look great in the mermaid suit."

"Hmm... Why is it always a mermaid suit?" wondered Tracey out loud.

"Because the underwater ballets are the most popular." answered Misty before taking the plate of food Brock held out to her.

"No need to worry Misty!" said Dawn encouragingly to the older girl she was starting to admire. "You're a Sensational Sister and a Gym Leader!"

"Yeah!" added May with a bright smile, "You were born for the stage, or should I say, pool!"

"And we'll all be in the stands cheering you on!" was Max's helpful addition.

Tracey patted her on the back. "See? It's going to be a great show and we're all going to be supporting you."

Misty smiled slightly at the supportive smiles on her friends faces. "Thanks you guys." she said and they all dropped the subject and continued with their meals. Meanwhile in her head, Misty was contemplating which of her new pokemon had the strongest Hyper Beam to use on her sisters...

It was a few hours later when Jessie, James, Meowth and Delibird skipped arm-in-arm, arm-in-paw and paw-in-wing, into the gym.

"Greetings twerps young and old!" was Jessie's shrill greeting of the day. Brock gave her a very strained smile. "Hello Jessie." he said as politely as he could.

"Oooh I wonder what pokemon your true love sent you today Misty!" May vocalised her thought to Misty who was standing patiently near the pool.

"I guess we'll have to wait and see." she replied and waited for the Delivery Squads acknowledgement.

"Right you are!" said James happily. "Looks like you've finally gotten the hang of this! Isn't that great Jessie?"

"Yeah, yeah can we get on with this?" asked Meowth with a nervous glance towards the Lapras who was swimming dangerously close to him.

"All right, hit it Meowth!" cried James springing into formation.

"On the eighth day of Christmas, my true love gave to me..."

Misty released the beams into the water and they all watched the eight figures take shape.

"Eight Lanturn a-laughing!"

"Lan!" came eight cries as they leaped out of the water and dived back in. The dolphin-like pokemon stuck their heads out of the water and looked at Misty happily as she greeted them and then dived back underwater to explore their new home. Misty watched as their glowing orbs disappeared into the depths of the pool before turning back to the group.

Daisy grabbed a piece of paper and a pen from Tracey and was writing down some points about Lanturns and lighting while Lily and Violet added their expert opinions.

"Yeah Lanturns will make the pool brighter!"

"And the light will make my hair shinier!"

Misty shook her head and looked at the others who were commenting about all the pokemon so far.

"Those Buizel and Vaporeon look adorable playing together!" gushed May.

"I think the Wooper look great!" added Max.

Dawn had released her Piplup from his poke ball and was busy apologising for having him in there for so long.

"Piplup!" reprimanded the pokemon.

"Oh I'm sorry Piplup! But look! There's another Piplup here I want to introduce you to!" she cried as Misty's Piplup approached her.

The two Piplup looked at each other before Dawn's ran off after Misty's to play. Dawn sighed in relief.

Brock was standing to the side and regarding the pool thoughtfully before he shook his head and joined Max and May's conversation.

As Misty watched Jessie, James, Meowth and Delibird turn to leave, she was struck by and idea.

"Hey!" she called walking up to them.

"Yes...?" asked Jessie, only faintly annoyed her exit had been interrupted.

"What are you guys doing on Christmas Eve?" she asked.

James scratched his chin thoughtfully. "Well nothing I guess besides a few last minute deliveries."

Misty smiled. "Great!" she said. "I'd like to invite you guys to the water show that night."

Jessie, Meowth and Delibird looked doubtful while James' eyes shone.

"Really?" he asked.

"Yup." she nodded. "Did I mention the tickets are free of charge?" she added to Jessie and Meowth.

"Free? Well count us in girlie!" nodded Meowth.

"Delibird!" the bird added, clearly having picked up some of Meowth's traits.

"We'll be there," agreed Jessie and with a wink, she pulled James along and left with the other two.

Misty smiled. It was the least she could do for them having been making these deliveries for her and seeing as she was now in the show, she might as well take advantage to give them free tickets. She sighed before heading back to the pool. She needed a long rest after this was all over...

**AN: **Well that marks the end of day eight! How's it going so far? Are you enjoying the characters and the pokemon? It's almost Christmas Eve, I hope you all are enjoying the holiday season =D Let me know what you thought about this one...

~DQ


	9. Chapter 9

**Disclaimer : I don't own Pokemon so you can't sue me...**

**The Twelve Pokemon of Christmas**

**On the Ninth day...**

Misty was exhausted the next morning. Her sisters had kept her up for most of the night with line rehearsals and practice recordings. Then they had forgotten to get her a full copy of the script so she was stuck rehearsing from scraps of paper. She did have to admit though, the bits she had read from Daisy's Master script were brilliant. Her sisters may not have the best knowledge when it came to Pokemon but they sure did know their theatre work. She yawned and dragged herself to the table and slumped in her seat. It appeared Brock had anticipated her state as he handed her a hot cup of coffee. She mumbled her thanks and sipped her coffee and watched as Brock prepared breakfast for the house. Brock turned to address her as he cracked a few eggs into a bowl.

"Tracey mentioned that Professor Oak and Mrs Ketchum are expected to arrive sometime today."

She nodded to the self appointed chef of the house. "Thanks for the heads up. Tracey would have probably reminded me as I let them in." She rolled her eyes.

"Hey I heard that!" came Tracey's voice as he sat down next to her.

"Anyway..." said Brock, intervening before an argument broke out. "I was just wondering if there was room for all of us here?"

"Oh no don't worry, there's plenty of room." Misty reassured him. "We've got six guest rooms and since you two are sharing, as are May and Dawn and Max has one to himself, there's still three unoccupied rooms."

"All right," said Brock. "I was just worried. I wouldn't have minded going to stay at the Pokemon Centre to give you more room."

"Of course you wouldn't," mumbled Tracey who caught Misty's eye and winked. Misty laughed as Brock threw him a glare and turned back to the stove.

Brock was just plating up when Max walked in. "Morning all," he greeted as he took a seat.

"Good morning Max," Misty greeted while Brock handed him a plate and Tracey nodded from his.

Max reached for the paper that was lying, neglected, on the chair next to him.

"Hey! Where'd the rest of the paper go?" he asked as he noticed several pages missing.

"Oh you noticed that," nodded Misty, not looking up from her own plate as she explained. "Daisy likes to take the entertainment pages so she can analyse her films reviews and check out the gossip."

"Oh okay..." shrugged Max turning back to the paper.

They sat in silence for a few minutes before May entered with Dawn appearing just moments after. "Good morning!" they greeted as they sat down with their food. The rest of the table nodded back in response.

"I'm so excited!" exclaimed May happily. "It's almost Christmas Eve!"

"Yeah I just can't wait for the show!" added Dawn equally cheerfully. Misty smiled at the two Co-ordinators enthusiasm.

"Aren't you excited Misty?" asked May suddenly. "What are you going to do when the deliveries are over?"

Misty was taken aback by the question. She hadn't really thought that far ahead. "Um, well I guess I am excited... And I honestly don't know. I'm kind of hoping that who ever it is will reveal himself with the last delivery."

The girls nodded at her. "Oh it's just so romantic!" gushed Dawn. "I can't wait to see who your admirer is!"

"Yeah, you and me both..." Misty shrugged.

"I bet it's someone famous!" said May with a contemplative look on her face. Brock and Tracey met each others eyes and snickered at May's elementary observation. She looked at them with annoyance. "And what are you laughing at?"

"We've been going over theories all week and that's what you have? 'Someone famous'?" Brock laughed.

"You gotta admit May, they've been running their investigation for a while now, they've probably covered that already." Max piped up, looking up from the paper.

"I'm just speculating over here! How was I supposed to know they already thought of that?" she cried.

"So May!" came Misty's voice, loudly cutting into the argument to distract the girl. "How are the contests going? I've never actually seen one of those in action."

Dawn and May's eyes grew wide at that. "Really?" May cried in horror.

Misty shrugged. "I don't get out much and as far as I know, there haven't been any contests in Cerulean." May was about to say something else when Dawn cut in.

"No need to worry! We'll do a demonstration for you!" she exclaimed with a nod. "That's a great idea!" said May and she began to go over which moves would impress Misty the most in her head.

Misty nodded in approval. "Sure, I'd love to see what you guys can do."

Breakfast continued smoothly after that and soon they were all heading to the main area for the Great Demonstration as May had dubbed it.

"So let's see what you can do!" said Misty as she took a seat on the stands with Brock, Tracey and Max. The two Co-ordinators nodded and May pulled out two poke balls while Dawn pulled out one and her Piplup walked over to her.

May released her pokemon first. "Beautifly, Glaceon, I choose you!"

"Beautifly!" cried the butterfly pokemon as it fluttered above May's head while Glaceon appeared at her feet.

"Wow they look great!" said Misty as she took in their appearances.

"Thanks!" said May happily and she contemplated what to do.

Dawn suddenly released her pokemon. "Togekiss, I choose you!"

"Togekiss!" she said as she landed next to Piplup.

The sight of the Togekiss made Misty nostalgic. "Wow a Togekiss... " she began.

"Misty used to have a Togepi that she raised for a long time," said Brock.

"Really?" said Dawn with interest. "What happened to it?"

"Well, long story short, he evolved into Togetic and is the protector of the Togepi in the Mirage Kingdom." Misty answered.

"Yeah I remember that..." added May. "That was back when Team Rocket were the bad guys!"

They all laughed at that. "All right," said Misty suddenly, "Show me what you got."

Dawn went into action. "Piplup, hop on her back! Togekiss, fly!" she commanded.

They did so and Misty and Tracey(who hadn't seen a contest either) watched with interest. "Togekiss, Aura Sphere! Piplup use BubbleBeam!" The group watched as the glowing Aura Sphere was surrounded with the BubbleBeam.

May caught on quickly, "Beautifly, use Silver Wind! And Glaceon, use Ice Shard!"

Misty watched in awe as the Silver Wind cut the Aura Sphere in half and the Ice Shard attack popped the BubbleBeam resulting in a bright, sparkling shower which May and Dawn squealed at. "Yeah it worked!" May cried with happiness.

"We're definitely gonna win the tag team Contests!" added Dawn with glee.

"Wow that's really good!" said Tracey as he watched the sparkles.

"Thanks! But now, Togekiss, another Aura Beam and Piplup use Whirlpool!"

They watched as the two attacks collided with each other and created what looked like a beautiful fireworks display.

"Wow!" exclaimed Misty as she admired the beauty. Who knew that they could create such beautiful moves?  
It was May's turn, "Glaceon, use Secret Power!" she cried and Misty watched as the Glaceon began to glow a bright pink. "Now, Glaceon use Mirror Coat and Beautifly use Silver Wind again!" This time as the Silver Wind attack hit Glaceon, they were deflected and resulted in a pretty effect of white and pink beams being cast off Glaceon.

Misty smiled as Brock, Max and Tracey cheered. Piplup jumped on Togekiss's head. "Right time for the finale May!"

"Ready when you are Dawn!"

"Togekiss use Sky Attack and Piplup use Peck!" Togekiss began to glow and charge as Piplup's beak began to glow and grow. It shined a white light that suddenly turned red as it surrounded the two Pokemon with Piplup's beak sticking out of the red making them look like a rocket being launched.

"Now Beautifly! Use Morning Sun! And Glaceon use Shadow Ball!" Beautifly began to rise up and glow blindingly above the other two really making it look like they were a rocket in space and Glaceon suddenly jumped and flipped twice before hitting the Shadow Ball at Piplup's Peck attack. The Ball hit and suddenly they were showered by purple energy as Piplup and Togekiss launched into Beautifly's light before coming back to the ground.

Misty, Tracey, Brock and Max applauded as May, Dawn and their Pokemon took their bows.

"That was amazing!" exclaimed Misty, looking between Dawn and May.

"We're glad you enjoyed it!" Dawn responded as she gave Togekiss and Piplup a hug before returning Togekiss.

"You guys were great!" added May to her Pokemon before returning them as well.

"I had no idea that you Co-ordinators could be so creative." said Misty. "I've seen all those moves in battles before but never in such beautiful combinations as that!"

May and Dawn smiled happily at Misty's comments. "It's a lot of hard work but it's all thanks to our Pokemon for pulling it off," said Dawn as she picked up Piplup and held him close.

"Yeah! It's all thanks to them!" added May.

Misty nodded, clearly impressed with their performance. The group hung around by the pool for a while with Misty explaining some things to Max, May and Dawn before Brock suggested they grab lunch.

After lunch, the group returned to the pool area where they were joined by Daisy, Lily and Violet who had returned from a morning of shopping.

"You should totally come shopping with us next time Misty," said Lily. "You could do with a new wardrobe."

Misty was about to say something when her retort was cut by the appearance of Jessie, James, Meowth and Delibird.

"Good afternoon...!" Jessie sang as she skipped in with James.

"How do you do?" He added with a twirl. Meowth sighed while Delibird shook his head.

"We're great," Misty smiled as they got their act together. "Well you're about to get even better when you see what we have for you today!" shrieked James with glee.

Jessie did an air punch and exclaimed, "Hit it Meowth!"

"On the ninth day of Christmas, my true love gave to me..."

"Thanks Delibird. I choose you!" Misty cried, letting the poke balls go.

They all watched as nine figures began to form on the edge of the pool.

"Nine Totodile a-treating!"

"Totodile!" the little blue monsters cried as they danced in joy around the pool. One of them jumped into Misty's arms as she stepped forward while Jessie used James as a shield as she held her hair and eyed their jaws.

"Wow! Totodiles!" exclaimed Max as he went forward to examine them. "I've seen quite a few of these in Johto and their great!"

"Well you would find their popular in Johto as their one of the starter Pokemon," said Brock as he watched Tracey sketch them.

"They're so cute!" squealed the Sensational Sisters and May and Dawn while the some of the Totodile danced around them happily. A couple had dived into the water to explore and the one in Misty's arms jumped down to dance with Misty's Politoed who seemed interested in the dancing blue pokemon.

"These guys are great!" said Misty as she turned to the Delivery Squad. Jessie was still trying to edge herself out behind James with a tight grip on her hair. "Yeah you have fun with them!" she said. "Just keep them away from me. I haven't forgotten the last time I was attacked by the vicious creatures."

James laughed and lead her out. "It's all right Jessie, they're not going to get your hair..." She snorted. "I don't care! Beautiful things are very fragile..."

Meowth shook his head as Delibird flew after them. "Well we'll see youse tomorrow!" he said before running after them.

Misty shook her head with a smile and turned back to the pool. Brock turned to Misty. "Well you've finally got a Totodile!" he said with a smile. She laughed, "Nine! And their just so cute!"

It was Brock's turn to laugh as Misty picked one up and hugged the hyperactive reptile. "You're going to grow into a big, strong Feraligatr one day aren't you?"

The pokemon responded with a happy nip of her hand and leaped into the water.

"Three day's left..." Brock reminded her.

"Yeah... I'm going to enjoy them!" she smiled.

"Hey Misty let's go rehearse now!" Daisy called, heading towards the office. Misty sighed. "Or at least I'll try to..."

The sun had just about set when Misty heard voices in the foyer. She walked in and was met with the sight of Professor Oak, in one of his floral T-shirts, and Mrs Ketchum observing the tank with Caserin and Luverin. "Hi Professor Oak, Mrs Ketchum! It's great to see you again!" she said as she stepped forward. "Hello Misty. It was nice of you to invite us." said Professor Oak with a smile. "Oh hello dear!" added Delia Ketchum. "My what adorable little Pokemon these are!" she motioned towards the tank. Misty smiled. "They are. They're inseparable!"

"Speaking of Pokemon..." said Professor Oak suddenly. "Tracey has informed me that you've recently become in the possession of several new water Pokemon!"

"Oooh yes from your secret admirer!" added Mrs Ketchum.

Misty sighed, "How about I show you to your rooms before we go see the Pokemon?"

"Oh yes, it's so nice of you to let us stay here!" said Delia as Misty lead them to the guest rooms. "Oh it's nothing Mrs Ketchum, after all, you've let me stay in your house plenty of times before!"

They were met by Brock and Tracey, the latter of whom was rather pleased to see his employer. Misty showed them their rooms and left them to get settled in and let Brock and Tracey lead them down to the pool. After introducing the new guests to all the new Pokemon and listening to Professor Oak's numerous lectures and answering a whole number of questions, there was only one thing on Misty's mind as she dragged herself to her room. 'When this is all over, I need a long rest...'

**AN: **Phew, this was a long one... I must say I took a lot of liberties with the mini Contest scene. I'm not 100% sure some of those combinations result in what I'd imagined. I must say coordinating is a lot harder to write than battling... Oh well, let me know what you thought about this chapter! We're nearing the end now! What do you think?

~DQ


	10. Chapter 10

**Disclaimer : **We all wish we owned a bit of the Pokemon World but sadly that's never going to happen...(Well, unless you're a shareholder or something which I am not...)

**The Twelve Pokemon of Christmas**

**On the Tenth day...**

Misty yawned as she made her way down to the kitchen the next morning. She was about to greet Brock when she noticed he wasn't in his usual spot in front of the stove. Instead, he was sitting at the table. "Good morning Misty!" said a cheery voice accompanied by a helpful shove into a seat. Misty looked up in surprise and was startled as a plate appeared before her eyes. She followed the arm and saw Mrs Ketchum's smiling face. "Eat up!" she said and went back to the stove, humming as she cooked. Misty looked at Brock questioningly. He sighed. "Don't ask..."

Misty shrugged and the two ate in silence before Tracey walked in.

"Good Morning all!" he greeted, going forward to grab a plate.

"Oh Tracey?" called Delia before he could sit down. "Would you be a dear and go grab Professor Oak and tell him breakfast's ready?" she asked the trusty assistant.

"Sure," he agreed. "Is he upstairs?"

"Oh no dear, he's by the pool. I don't think he could restrain himself from all those Pokemon." Delia shook her head with a smile and turned back to the stove. Tracey returned a few moments later with Professor Oak reluctantly in tow. Misty noted he had his notepad out and was still scribbling away as Tracey ushered him into the kitchen. Delia put a plate in front of him and grabbed his notepad.

"Now Samuel, we discussed this. You need to eat." she reprimanded as she placed the notepad a safe distance away. "The Pokemon aren't going anywhere are they Misty?" she added to the girl.

"Oh no no no they're not going anywhere!" Misty reassured Professor Oak and nodded to Mrs. Ketchum.

Brock laughed as the Professor sighed in defeat and ate his breakfast. "Is this a regular thing?" he asked Tracey.

"Oh yeah... We have to drag him away from his computer at night." said Tracey with a sigh. "Oh and he doesn't come to lunch unless we have Muk carry him away from the corral."

"I am a renowned researcher!" the Professor piped up in defence of his behaviour. "My research is very important. Do you blame me for dedicating every waking moment I have to it?"

"Of course not Samuel we're just concerned..." said Delia softly. Professor Oak sighed. "Oh all right... I'll buy a watch as soon as we get back."

"You're supposed to be on holiday here." Tracey reminded him. "Fine! I'll just observe then." Professor Oak agreed reluctantly.

Misty and Brock just grinned in amusement.

"So Misty," began Professor Oak, turning to the Gym Leader, "All your Pokemon look like they're in great condition! I'm very impressed." Misty blushed at the praise. "Oh but I'm not really responsible for the condition of the new ones." she said modestly. The Professor dismissed her comment.

"Oh nonsense! All the Pokemon look like they're thriving in this environment!" Misty smiled then. "Thanks Professor."

"I wonder what you'll receive next?" he mused, returning to his food. Misty got up and put her dishes in the dishwasher. "Thanks for breakfast Mrs. Ketchum," she said as she turned to leave. "It was great!"

Delia smiled at the girls good manners. "Oh you're welcome dear!" she called as Misty left for pool.

'Such a sweet girl!' she thought as she sipped her tea.

Brock and Tracey had decided to take Misty's absence as an opportunity to ask Professor Oak a few questions to further their investigation.

"What do you think Professor? Did he speak to you about this?" asked Brock once Tracey had explained their current status on the situation. Professor Oak looked thoughtful. "No this is the first I'm hearing of it... I actually haven't heard from him in a while." Brock and Tracey slumped in their chairs at the lack of leads.

"Well I must say though, I wouldn't be surprised if it did turn out to be him." The Professor added thoughtfully.

Brock and Tracey sat up suddenly alert. "What do you mean?" asked Brock curiously.

"Well I may be old but I'm not blind!" Professor Oak said indignantly. "I've certainly noticed his behaviour around her over the last few year especially... And come to think of it, his storage shelf had certainly gotten a lot larger and then he suddenly took quite a few of them away..."

Brock and Tracey looked at each other in joy. "Then it must be him!" Tracey cried.

"Yeah! That's all the proof we need!" added Brock and the two future colleagues high five-d. Delia smiled secretly from her spot at the counter as she observed the conversation before her. He would be quite disappointed to find out that he had already been found out...

Most of the day passed by uneventfully. Misty did some training and rehearsing while Professor Oak kept the rest of the house entertained with his poetry. It was late afternoon and he was currently reciting the three page 'Ode to Ho-Oh' by the pool, much to the pleasure of Tracey, Max and Dawn and boredom of everyone else, when Jessie, James, Meowth and Delibird pranced in.

"Oooh the 'Ode to Ho-Oh'!" exclaimed James as he hopped into a seat next to Max. "I love this poem!"

Jessie sighed and grabbed his arm and pulled him up. "Hey we have a job to do! You can listen to poetry later!"

James pouted and went back in line as Misty stood up to greet them while Professor Oak stopped reciting to observe.

"So what do you guys have for me today?" she asked as Meowth pulled out his CD player.

"Just you wait and see!" Jessie sang and she gave her a wink.

"Oh is this a musical?" asked Delia as she watched them pose.

"You betcha!" said Meowth as he hit play.

"On the tenth day of Christmas, my true love gave to me..."

Misty released the ten poke balls into the water with a cry of, "I choose you!"

The large group watched eagerly as ten quite sleek figures began to form in the water.

"Ten Gorebyss a-glowing!"

Daisy, Lily and Violet squealed as the elegant pink Pokemon materialised. "They're _so_ pretty!" Lily gushed as the Gorebyss began to swim around curiously. "And they're pink!" Violet added with glee and all three clapped their hands together and sighed.

"Misty, I hope you know you are _so _marrying this guy!" said Daisy seriously as they went back to the office. "He clearly has excellent taste!"

Misty ignored her sister as she greeted her new friends and heard Dawn's Pokedex go off behind her. "Gorebyss, the South Sea Pokemon. It's long, beautiful pink body is more vivid in the springtime."

The Gorebyss swam away to explore their new home and Misty watched them swim away.

"They really are beautiful to watch." she said to herself as the eel-like Pokemon disappeared from view. Brock smirked at her. "They kinda look like mermaids."

Misty promptly hit him over the head.

She turned back to the Delivery Squad and saw that James had returned to his seat as Professor Oak resumed his reading with only three members of his original audience remaining. Brock was petting the Milotic who had floated up to say hi and May was playing with Piplup and Marill while Psyduck took a nap.

"So how are you feeling Misty?" Asked Delia with concern as she watched the girl looking towards the pool. Misty turned to her. "I feel anxious." she said honestly. "My nerves feel like they're going to explode!"

Jessie suddenly appeared next to her. "Hang in there kid," she said reassuringly. "Only two more days to go!"

Misty smiled at the two older women who seemed to be offering her emotional support in their own ways. "Thank you," she said to the both of them sincerely. "I just can't wait for the next two days! This feels so much more intense than my first official gym battle..."

Delia smiled. "Feelings and emotions are generally a lot more intense than Pokemon battles..." she said knowingly while Jessie nodded. Delia then bent down to greet Delibird who was standing next to Jessie, clearly not as interested in the poem as James and Meowth. "And who is this adorable little thing?" she gushed while petting it's head adoringly.

"Delibird!" it cried and happily received the adoration Mrs. Ketchum was generously bestowing upon it.

Misty turned to Jessie who was quickly growing impatient waiting for James and Meowth. "Who writes a three page poem? Seriously!"

Misty laughed and smiled at her. "How about you guys just stay for dinner?" she offered. She was really getting used to having the dysfunctional family around after all, what's a few more people?

"Free food? Of course, we'd be glad to!" Jessie sang happily. The two laughed and fell into a casual conversation as the sun began to set on another day.

**AN:** Kinda on the short side I know but we've got the big finale coming up soon! It's almost Christmas Eve and depending on where you are in the world, you will either be receiving two chapters today and one on the 24th or all three on the 24th OR one today and the other two tomorrow! I hope you're still enjoying this! We've got a few more guests arriving soon so stay tuned and don't forget to drop your thoughts by! Happy Holidays!

~DQ


	11. Chapter 11

**Disclaimer: **I don't own Pokemon!

**The Twelve Pokemon of Christmas**

**On the Eleventh day...**

With just one day to go until the big water show, the Cerulean Gym was quite chaotic. Daisy was running around on the phone to her costume people, Violet was on the phone with the electrician trying to order a specific type of light bulb and Lily was, you guessed it, on the phone to the prop people. That left Misty with, what they claimed was the easiest job of them all, cleaning the gym...

"How can you guys leave me to do this _one_ day before the show?" she yelled as they chattered away.

"Oh come on Misty! We're really busy!" said Daisy and promptly slammed the office door in her face. Misty huffed in annoyance and stormed to the store room to get the cleaning equipment.

"Um Misty?" a quiet voice called after her, mid-storm.

"What?" she growled, menacingly glaring, as she turned around. The glare fell of her face as she saw Brock, Tracey, May, Dawn and Max before her, all equipped with cleaning supplies. She smiled happily at their willingness to help her. "Thanks a lot you guys!" she said as she took a mop from Brock.

"Hey we can't leave you to do all this by yourself!" Brock said with a smile.

"What are friends for?" added Max cheerfully.

"Besides," piped up Tracey as he expertly spun the mop in his hand around. "This happens to be one of my favourite hobbies!" he joked. They all laughed and headed to the foyer to get to work. Professor Oak and Delia Ketchum had gone to visit the Pokemon centre after breakfast and so were spared the sight of the youngsters doing work.

The foyer was shining in no time at all and so they headed to the main area where the show would take place. "Oh this may take a while..." said May as they looked at the suddenly towering stands. Misty got into leader mode and assigned each person an area. A few heads popped out of the pool to investigate what was going on. Some of the Pokemon then jumped out of the pool and headed over to Misty. "Hey Misty!" called Dawn as she noticed the Vaporeon and Buizel jumping out to join the others. "I think the Pokemon want to help out!"

They all turned to see the group of Pokemon who had appeared behind Misty. She turned and smiled at the group. "Do you guys want to help out?" She was met with several enthusiastic nods from the Vaporeon, Buizel, Politoed, Marill, Lapras, some Totodile, Wooper, Spheal, both her and Dawns Piplups, Dewgong and even Psyduck who picked up a bucket and looked at her.

"All right gang!" she called once she had sent some of the Pokemon to each of her friends. "Let's clean this gym!" The sounds of laughter and Water Guns filled the air over the next hour or so as the Pokemon and their pals managed to get the entire area spotless.

"Phew!" they all sighed in relief before collapsing on the floor in a heap. "I can't believe we did it!" exclaimed Dawn as they took in the sight of the sparkling gym.

"Yeah!" added Brock. "I say we get some lunch now." he suggested.

"All right!" all but one cheered as they got up and headed for the kitchen while the Pokemon headed back to the pool to cool off.

"You guys go on ahead," said Misty as she grabbed a poke ball. "I have one more task to do."

"What?" cried May. "You mean there's more?"

Misty laughed. "Oh don't worry," she said. "I can handle this one on my own."

"What do you still have to do?" asked Max looking around.

"Oh the Dewgong outside just needs a quick polish. Shouldn't be too long." she said casually. "But how are you gonna reach it all the way up there?" Max asked with concern. Misty winked and aimed the poke ball at the pool. "With a little help from a friend. Gyarados return!"

Misty waved and headed outside with Gyarados and the polish.

A while later, outside the gym, a young girl was making her way towards the stadium. She waved her flag and casually walked along the path as she hummed the theme song of her favourite team. She spared passing glance to the gym before she suddenly slammed into an incredibly large, muscular structure. She lifted her head up and up( and up and up) and jumped back with a yelp as she realised she just walked into a Gyarados. A shadow suddenly appeared over her and spoke. "Oh hi Casey!"

Casey shielded her eyes from the sun and was surprised to see her friend Misty sitting atop of the Gyarados with a bottle of polish and a cloth in her hands.

"Hi Misty! What are you doing? You nearly gave me a heart attack!"

Misty laughed and said something to the Gyarados who began to lower his head essentially letting her down. "Thanks Gyarados! I'll take you back to the pool now." she said. The Gyarados smiled, or at least Casey thought that was a smile, and Misty recalled her beloved monster.

"So what were you doing up there besides scaring the wits out of people?" Casey asked curiously. "Oh just doing some polishing..." she said as she motioned to the bright Dewgong who was now sparkling in the sunlight. "What about you?" Misty asked the sports fan.

Casey waved her flag. "Oh I was on my way to the finals!" she said enthusiastically. "We're gonna crush those Ursaring this year!" she cheered.

Misty smiled at her enthusiasm. "Well I'll be rooting for the Electabuzz from here. Is the game starting soon?"

"Oh no it's an evening game so I don't need to be there for a while."

Misty's smile grew. "Great! Why don't you come in and have lunch? There's quite a few people here."

Casey shrugged. "Sure! As long as you don't keep me too long! I don't wanna miss them practising!" Misty laughed and the two headed inside.

After she released Gyarados back into the pool, Misty and Casey headed towards the kitchen. "Wow this place looks great!" Casey exclaimed. "This set up all for the show tomorrow?" she asked. Misty sighed, "Ah, so you heard about that..."

"Of course I heard about it! It's the talk of the town you know. It's supposed to be the 'great return to the pool for one night only' of some famous water ballerina." Casey remarked, quoting from one of the many ads she had seen and heard.

"What!" Misty cried in surprise as they entered the kitchen. "Really Misty, you live here. You should know all about this person already."

Brock and Tracey snickered from the table having heard the last part of the conversation. "Wow they're recycling your last campaign!" Brock laughed.

"Oh and don't worry Casey," Tracey added. "She knows all about the famous ballerina. In fact we all know her quite well!"

"Really?" said Casey curiously. "Who is she?" She followed Brock and Tracey's pointed fingers and saw Misty shaking her head. "What! I didn't know you were into ballet Misty!" Casey laughed in surprise. Misty growled as she grabbed a sandwich. "I am not! I'm just doing it to help my sisters out..."

Casey opened her mouth to say something else when Misty cut her off. "Casey, let me introduce you to some of my friends!" She motioned to the other three who were observing the exchange in amusement. "This is May and Dawn, renowned Pokemon Coordinators," May and Dawn blushed and waved. "Hi!" they said in unison. "And this is Max, Trainer extraordinaire!" Max nodded at her. "This is Casey, the ultimate Electabuzz fan!"

"It's nice to meet you guys," said Casey. "I take it you're all here for the show?"

"Oh yeah!" said Dawn. "It's going to be great!"

Casey nodded. "It must be pretty exciting around here with all the preparations."

Tracey laughed. "Oh that's not the only excitement around here..." he said while drawing Casey a chair. Misty sighed and left Tracey to get Casey up to speed on the latest events over a plate of sandwiches. 'Honestly. They're all more excited than me! Maybe it's because they don't feel like exploding...'

"Maybe it's that guy Georgio..." said Casey casually turning to Misty. "Remember him? He's actually in town for the game!"

"Nah it's not him..." said Misty with a shake of her head. "That was years ago... Hang on!" she sat up. "How do you know he's here?" she asked curiously.

"Well we kind of kept in touch..." she said nervously. "We meet up at some of the games occasionally..." Misty smirked and was about to interrogate the girl when a voice suddenly called from the foyer.

"Yoo-hoo...? Anybody home?" came Jessies distinct voice. The group got up to meet the Delivery Squad. Professor Oak and Mrs Ketchum suddenly appeared behind James.

"Oh good!" exclaimed Delia with relief. "We made it back just in time!"

"I must say, I too am quite excited to see what Pokemon is next!" added Professor Oak eagerly. Jessie and Misty just stared. "All right lets go to the pool." said Misty leading the way.

"Oh my!" Delia said as she took in the sparkling gym. The youngsters grinned proudly.

"Well we're almost at the end of this exciting journey!" said James as he took his usual spot.

"But don't despair!" added Jessie. "The Jessie&James Delivery service will still be there!"

"Meowth that's right!"

"Delibird!"

Before anyone could react however, Meowth hit the play button.

"On the eleventh day of Christmas, my true love gave to me..."

Misty was glad the poke balls were in their miniature form as she picked them up. Eleven poke balls were quite a handful. "I choose you!" she cried as she released them into the water. Her sisters ran in and stared as the eleven Pokemon began to take shape.

"Eleven Finneon a-fluttering!"

"Oh wow!" Misty exclaimed as the eleven beautiful fish appeared before her.

"Finneon!" they sang and swam towards her in greeting. "Oooh!" Said Lily and Violet as they watched them swim.

"Finneon are known as the 'Beautifly of the Sea'." Professor Oak informed Misty as the Finneon happily leaped out of the water and splashed elegantly back in. "You've got quite a variety here as well. You can see the females bottom tail fin lobes are bigger than the males."

"Wow..." said Misty again.

"They really are pretty!" added Delia. "Yeah..." sighed Daisy, May and Dawn, no doubt thinking about the romance behind them.

"Well Misty, you certainly have someone out there whipped!" said Casey bluntly. Misty just shook her head with a smile and they all just watched the Pokemon in the pool swim happily, well except for Tracey who was drawing them.

Jessie turned to Misty. "So are you ready for lucky number twelve tomorrow?" she asked.

Misty looked at her. "Not really... I'm still nervous." she answered honestly.

"You know," said Daisy suddenly. "I don't want it to end. This has really added loads of excitement to Christmas this year!"

"Yeah I know what you mean..." said Misty. "It's kinda gonna be sad when it's all over..."

"Aw don't worry kid!" added Meowth. "I know youse gonna miss us but we'll still be around!"

Misty smiled at him. "Yeah thanks Meowth! It's definitely your singing I'm gonna miss the most." And with that Misty escorted the Delivery Squad and Casey to the entrance as they left.

Misty stood there and waved at them as the sun set before she suddenly noticed a figure walking towards her. From the silhouette she could see it was a guy. He walked towards her and she squinted to make out his features. He certainly looked familiar she noticed his cap as he got closer. Suddenly she noticed another, much smaller figure running towards her.

"Pika!" came the unmistakable cry of a Pikachu as the two appeared clearly before her. Misty's eyes widened as she took in the sight of the trainer and his Pikachu, both of whom she hadn't seen in a really long time... "Hi Misty!" the guy said with a smile.

Misty just stared before a grin spread across her face.

"Ritchie!" she exclaimed in surprise and lead him into the gym.

'Well this is a surprise...'

**AN: **Gotcha! XD Admit it... Who fell for that? I couldn't resist... Anyway, Merry Christmas Eve or Merry Christmas to you all =D!

~DragonQuillZ


	12. Chapter 12

**Disclaimer: **You guys get the idea by now... I don't own Pokemon...

**The Twelve Pokemon of Christmas**

**On the Twelfth day...**

After Ritchie and Sparky's surprise arrival the day before, Misty wasn't sure she could handle any more guests. Ritchie it appeared, had heard about the production from Brock a while back and had decided to get himself a ticket after hearing about all the people that would be attending. He thought the show would be a great way to see everyone again and they did have a lot of fun last night catching up and sharing multiple tales of adventure from everyone but today she had no time to entertain. The big show was tonight and Misty's nerves were completely shot. On top of that, today was also the last delivery from her admirer so she had no idea what to expect. The kitchen was full this morning and at the moment Daisy and Mrs Ketchum were trying to calm her down.

"Misty relax! You're not gonna ruin the show!" Daisy reassured her.

"But Daisy the last show I did was so many years ago!" Misty shrieked. "I'm not made for the stage like the three of you!"

"Like, yeah, you were made for the pool which is why we made you the mermaid." Daisy said as if it was the most obvious thing in the world. Delia put a hand on the distraught girls shoulder. "Listen to your sister dear," the older woman said soothingly. "They wouldn't have used you if they weren't absolutely sure you would do a great job!"

"Yeah!" added Daisy. "And look, all your friends are here!" She motioned to all the people eating breakfast around them. They all smiled brightly and encouragingly at her. Misty sighed and gave them a small smile in return. "Thanks Daisy, and you too Mrs Ketchum," she began. "And you guys as well. It's just I'm nervous and today's the last delivery..." she trailed off. Her oldest friend in the room came up to her and gave her a hug. "You have nothing to be afraid of Misty," said Brock. "We're all here with you through all of this!" He suddenly grinned. "And besides, it's Christmas Eve!" he exclaimed as he whipped out a Santa hat and placed it lopsided on his head. That drew a laugh from Misty and her mood lifted and she joined the cheer in the room.

A few moments later, Jessie's unmistakable voice sounded from the foyer. "Good morning!" she cried as the incredibly large group went out to meet them. Jessie, James, Meowth and Delibird were all equipped with a Santa hat as they greeted the mass. "Morning," said Misty nervously and she gestured towards the gym area for the final delivery. James gave her a smile as they took their positions. "You have nothing to fear Misty," he said encouragingly. "If there's one thing we've all learnt over the last few days it's that this guy really cares about you."

Jessie nodded and gave her a smile. "So are you ready?"

Misty looked her in the eye and nodded.

"Wow this is some audience..." muttered Meowth as he observed the gathering.

Ritchie leaned forward. "I've really missed a lot haven't I?" he whispered to Tracey. "Oh yeah..." was Tracey's reply.

"Delibird!" cried the Pokemon impatiently.

"Yeah I agree with him, let's go!" said Meowth and with that, he hit play for the last time.

"On the twelfth day of Christmas, my true love gave to me..."

"Thanks a lot." Misty whispered to Delibird as she took the twelve Poke balls and released them. The large group watched eagerly as the twelve shapes began to form on the edge of the pool.

"Twelve Shellos a-slugging!"

The group looked in awe as twelve Shellos appeared before them. But there was something distinctly different about them. Before Misty could open her mouth to ask, Professor Oak stepped into action. "Ah yes, Shellos are found in the Sinnoh region," he began. "There are two confirmed types of species, the pink from the West Sea and the Blue from the East Sea. It would appear you have six of each!"

"Oh wow!" Misty exclaimed in wonder as she watched the Shellos wander happily along the pool. Before she could comment any further, Jessie cleared her throat. The group turned to the Delivery Squad who were still in their positions.

"Well seeing as this was the final delivery," Jessie began.

"It really would make sense..." James continued.

"To do a round up of all the Pokemon over the last twelve days!" finished Meowth! "Here we go!"

"On the Twelfth day of Christmas my true love gave to me:

Twelve Shellos a-slugging,

Eleven Finneon a-fluttering,

Ten Gorebyss a-glowing,

Nine Totodile a-treating,

Eight Lanturn a-laughing,

Seven Spheal a-smiling,

Six Wooper whooping,

Five bouncing Buizel!

Four Vaporous Vaporeon,

Three Lapras leaping,

Two majestic Milotic

And a Piplup in a Pokeball...!"

Everyone applauded and cheered as Jessie, James, Meowth and Delibird smiled and took their final bows.

"Hey wait!" said Max suddenly. They all turned to him.

"What is it Max?" asked Misty in concern. Max pointed to one of the East Sea Shellos that was gliding towards her with a piece of paper in it's mouth.

"Oh my gosh!" May exclaimed. "It must be a note from him!"

Misty's hand shook as she accepted the note from Shellos.

"Well don't keep up waiting!" cried Lily, Violet, Dawn and James! Jessie just stared at her husband and rolled her eyes.

Misty read the note aloud. "'See you soon...' that's all it says..."

"That must mean he's coming to the show!" May squealed in delight.

"Oh this is so exciting!" added Dawn. Brock took the note to examine it. "Hmm... It's typed." he noted.

"Smart move," said Ritchie. "Probably so no one would recognise his writing."

"Which can only mean that we know him!" said Tracey with excitement.

Misty smiled as her heart began to pound. 'He's going to be at the show!'

Jessie turned to her. "We'll be going now," she said. "See you tonight!"

"I'll walk you out." Misty said with a nod.

Meanwhile another young man and his best friend had appeared in the entrance of the gym and was looking around. "Wow this place looks great!" he exclaimed as he took in the sights.

Misty suddenly entered the foyer from the pool area with a large group of people with her. She looked up and suddenly met the eyes of the young man and suddenly stopped as her jaw dropped in shock. Jessie, James, Meowth and Delibird continued forwards. "'Til later then!" said Jessie cheerfully.

"It's been a blast!" added James with a wink.

The young man turned his head and his eyes widened in shock as he saw Jessie and James.

"Oh no! Team Rocket!" he yelled. "Pikachu, Thunderbolt em!"

"Pika...!" the yellow Pokemon began to charge. Misty suddenly shook her head and screamed.

"Ash! No!"

"Chu...!" Too late.

"AH!" screamed Jessie, James and Meowth as they were hit. Misty ran forward as the rest of the gang entered.

"Are you guys all right?" she asked with concern, helping Jessie to her feet.

"Oh my gosh! What happened?" asked Delia in confusion.

The trio stood up unsteadily and James let out a shaky laugh. "Heh heh, well it certainly has been a while..."

Jessie turned her head with a dangerous glare. "Thanks a lot twerp!" she screeched. "Now I have to do my hair all over again!"

Dawn stepped forward and handed her a brush. Ash shook his head and watched as all his friends ( and his mom!) helped the members of Team Rocket.

"It's like we stepped into the Twilight Zone..." he muttered to Pikachu.

"Pika..." he added in complete confusion.

It was then that people seemed to notice he was there. "Ash!" cried several people at once. His mother ran forward and threw her arms around him. "Oh Ash! You've gotten so tall!" she exclaimed tearfully as she looked up at him. He laughed and patted him mom on the back. "Yeah well I guess it's been a while since I've come to visit." Delia suddenly stepped back and put her hands on her hips. "Now dear I think you owe these nice people an apology for setting Pikachu on them." She looked down at the Pikachu in his arms. "Of course, I don't blame you sweety," she said as she petted the mouse-like Pokemon.

"Pika!" he said happily, glad he wasn't to blame.

Although he was still completely confused, Ash really didn't want to upset his mother further and so turned to the trio.

"I'm sorry..." he said nervously and scratched the back of his neck with a sheepish grin.

"Yeah you better be!" said Jessie with another glare. She grabbed James' arm and pushed past him. "Come on James. It's going to take me all day to get ready now!"

James waved goodbye over his shoulder as he was hauled by his wife. Meowth and Delibird followed after. "It would've taken her all day anyway..." Meowth muttered as the two of them left the building.

They all watched them leave before Ash turned back to his friends. "Will someone _please_ tell me what's going on?" he said giving each person an imploring look.

"First things first dear," began Delia pulling him further into the foyer. "What are you doing here?" Ash gave her a look. "Well you can imagine my surprise to come home and find my house empty!" he said accusingly. "I was really worried so I went up to the Professor's house." He looked at Professor Oak and nodded at his mentor before turning back to his mom. "Mr. Mime was there and he showed me a note saying you two and Tracey were here for a water show and now here I am!"

Delia nodded and smiled at her son. He looked so much older but he was still very much her little boy.

"Anyway," Ash continued looking at each face in the group. "I had no idea so many of you would be here! This is awesome!"

Misty smiled at the antics of her oldest friend and shook her head. 'Typical Ash...' she thought as she watched him and Pikachu move down the line of friends, greeting them all with a hug and enthusiasm.

"And last but not least, Misty!" he smiled as he stood before her and then engulfed her in a bear hug.

"You could have called first you big idiot!" she said in an angry voice as she stepped back but her grin betrayed her.

"Pika!" cried Pikachu as he jumped into her arms. "Hey Pikachu!" she said and gave him a hug too. "You look great!" he smiled up at her before springing back onto Ash's shoulder.

Ash looked around again. "So big show tonight huh?" he said with a grin. "You know that Mermaid on the poster looks awfully familiar..."

Everyone laughed and Misty gave him a playful shove. "Don't even go there..." she advised. "I guess you're in need of a ticket now huh?" she asked.

Ash grinned sheepishly and she rolled her eyes. "I'm sure we can fit you in somewhere."

'Oh I know the perfect place' came an evil thought.

Ash turned to Brock and threw and arm around his shoulder. "Have you guys been having fun here?" He asked all his former travelling companions( and Ritchie).

May and Dawn grinned and winked at Misty. "Oh you have no idea..." said Dawn cryptically. Brock laughed at Ash's tilted head and lead him away. "Oh Ash..." he began as he lead him upstairs. "Let me fill you in..."

Misty smiled as she watched all the guests disappear up the stairs to catch up and prepare for the night ahead. She turned back to the pool entrance way. She had some preparing to do as well...

Pretty soon, it was 6:58 PM and Daisy was sitting at the entrance desk, ready to start checking tickets when all their guests began to file down the stairs.

"Hey!" greeted Daisy as they all came down. "You guys look totally awesome!" she said as she took in their appearances. May, Dawn, Mrs Ketchum and the three Joy's( who Brock had brought in earlier) were all dressed in pretty, semi-formal dresses and they each looked stunning. Professor Oak had traded his ghastly floral ensemble for a decent dress shirt and trousers and looked much more appropriate in Daisy's opinion. Brock, Tracey, Ash, Ritchie and Max were each wearing shirts too and formal trousers. Daisy nodded in approval as she took in their semi-debonair looks.

Jessie, James, Meowth and Delibird were standing near the desk as well, having wisely arrived early, and were engaged in conversation among themselves. Jessie and James were also looking very polished Daisy noted and Meowth and Delibird were wearing bow-ties and coats.

May and Dawn were practically bouncing in excitement. "This is so exciting!" squealed May.

"I can't wait for it to start!"

"Me too!" added Dawn. "This show is going to be awesome! And I can't wait to see Misty!"

Ash examined the ticket in his hand curiously. "What's this show about anyway?" he asked Daisy.

"Oh it's totally awesome! It's an underwater Christmas story all from my creative genius!" she said modestly.

Brock and Tracey rolled their eyes. "Hey we helped with that script!" said Tracey.

"Yah but that was just for the technical stuff," said Daisy with a wave of her hand. "You didn't actually contribute to the story."

Ash laughed. "Well she got you there..." he told Tracey with a nudge in the ribs. Daisy looked up at the clock. "Oh it's seven! Let me take your tickets first so you can go in quick before the stampede." She collected their tickets and ushered them into the arena before going back and opening the doors. "Welcome to the Sensational Sisters Christmas Ballet!"

The group walked into the arena with awe. The room was dark with stage lights illuminating the stands so people could find their seats. There were red, gold, silver and green drapes hanging across the ceiling and along the railings.

"This looks incredible!" exclaimed Max as they took their seats. They really had great seats. Misty rearranged it so they would all be seated together in the centre so they would have a perfect view of the tank when it rose. They filed in order : Professor Oak, Delia, Nurse Joy, Nurse Joy, Nurse Joy, Brock,Tracey, Max, May, Dawn with Piplup, Ritchie with Sparky, Ash and Pikachu and then, "Oh no..." Jessie glared at him before she took her seat next to him. "Just don't talk to me and we're good." she said as James, Meowth and Delibird took their seats.

"Yes ma'am!"

The row chatted excitedly for a few more minutes as people flooded into the arena. "Wow!" exclaimed Ritchie as within moments the seats around them were filled. "They ticket lady wasn't kidding on the phone when she said I was lucky to get one..."

"Well yeah!" said Dawn. "These _are_ the Sensational Sisters! Their shows are usually booked solid for six months straight!"

"And this is a one night special." added May. "It was a very quick launch." Ash and Ritchie nodded and as the last few seats filled up, the lights on the arena began to dim and the pool lights were suddenly switched on. "Ssssh! It's starting!"

"Ladies and Gentleman and Pokemon of all ages," came Violets voice. "Welcome to the Sensational Sisters Under the Sea rendition of Twas The Night Before Christmas. Sit back, relax and enjoy the show!"

The audience watched in awe as the humongous began to rise and the room was thrust into complete darkness. Suddenly, some light music began to play as Lily's voice sounded and soft lights began to illuminate the water.

"Twas the night before Christmas, and all through the sea,

Not a creature was stirring, not even Goldeen."

The audience sighed as they saw the many Water Pokemon sleeping peacefully in the pool.

Violets voice continued.

"The Pokemon huddled together with care,

In the hopes that St. Nicholas soon would be there."

Suddenly another light slowly began to illuminate another area of the pool and they all gasped at the sight of Lily and Violet dressed as the King and Queen Mermaids seemingly asleep in a large clam and they all gasped again as another clam opened to reveal the beautiful Misty Mermaid!

Lily went on.

"The Mermaids were nestled all snug in their beds,

While visions of Milotic danced in their heads."

"Wow..." sighed May as the two beautiful Milotic appeared and began to dance above the sleeping Mermaids.

It seemed Lily and Violet were the narrators for this and were taking turns with the verses as it was Violets turn again.

"And the Queen with her kerchief and the King in his nightcap,

Had just settled their brains for a long Winter's nap."

"When out above the sea, there arose such a clatter."

The sound of bells were heard around the arena and suddenly Misty began to awaken.

"The Princess sprang from her bed to see what was the matter."

They all watched, entranced, as Misty began to swim elegantly to the surface.

"Away to the surface she swam like a burn,

Broke through the water and saw Lanturn!"

Misty was half way onto a rock and looked around in wander as the Lanturn's lights flickered before her.

"The moon light scattered on the sheen of the water,

Gave the Shellder below a shiny new lustre."

The audience were mesmerised by the beauty of the lights on the Pokemon and the water as sighs echoed around them. Misty rubbed her eyes.

"When what sight should her half-open eyes before her create,

But a bright red sleigh and Lanturn of number eight"

"With a little old driver so lively and quick,

She knew in a moment, it must be St. Nick!"

The audience looked to where Misty was leaning and indeed saw a red sleigh being slowly pulled by eight Lanturn!

"More rapid than Gyarados his course as they came,

He whistled and shouted and called them by name"

Daisy's voice was suddenly heard in a deep tone.

"Now Dasher, now Dancer,

Now Prancer and Vixen

On Comet, on Cupid, on

Donner and Blitzen"

Lily was back on.

"To the top of the reef, to the top of the sea,

Now dash away, dash away, dash away please."

Misty jumped up onto the rock completely and she stared at the Lanturn approaching.

"The Princess hopped above sea in anxious wait,

for only St. Nicholas could be out this late."

"She knew he would be there after her tail she gave a swish,"

The group were surprised as they heard Misty's voice over suddenly sound :

"Only you St. Nick can grant me my Christmas wish!"

Suddenly a spotlight appeared over the sleigh to reveal Daisy herself in a very good Santa Claus costume.

Violet continued.

"His eyes, how they twinkled, his dimples, how merry

His cheeks were like roses, his nose like a cherry.

His drone little mouth was drawn up like a bow,

And the beard on his chin was as white as the snow."

"He smiled at the Princess who at him did gaze,

He puffed on his pipe and created a haze.

He looked at the girl who seemed terribly forlorn."

Daisy's voice was heard again.

"What is it my dear that has you so torn?"

"The Mermaid looked up at St Nick, with sparkling eyes,

Before she averted her gaze and looked to the skies."

"Wow! Misty is a really great actress isn't she?" whispered Dawn as they watched Misty perform her role with perfection. Her voice over was on again.

"Oh please dear sir! Could you do me this plea?

For Christmas return my beloved to me!"

The audience watched in awe as some of the Pokemon danced below the sea while they kept their gazes fixed on Misty and Daisy as Daisy's voice over continued.

"Fear not dear child, you have nothing to dread.

You will see him soon so go rest your sweet head."

'Hmm...' thought Brock, mesmerised by the tale.

Violet continued.

"He sprang to his sleigh, to his team gave a whistle

And away they all swam, like the down of a thistle."

The Lanturn sped off with Daisy into the darkness and Misty dived back underwater.

"The Princess returned with some hope in her heart,

That St. Nick would ensure she and her love never again would part."

Misty swam back to the bottom, dancing with Gyarados and Gorebyss as she went along.

"She lay her head down and let out a sigh,

hoping that morning soon would come by."

Everyone was so completely entranced by the story that they were leaning against the rails in anxiety. They all watched as suddenly the Milotic, Wooper, Spheal, Dewgong, and a few others began to dance around Misty's sleeping form.

"The Pokemon all grew restless in the sea,

as they woke the Princess she thought," Misty came back on, "Could it be?"

"In their excited state, they motioned she should follow,

She could hardly believe it was already the morrow!"

Misty swam back to the rock and got up looking around as the Pokemon circled her.

"The Princess searched as far as her eyes could see,

But nothing appeared out of the ordinary!"

"The Princess sighed again in despair,

but suddenly Finneon leapt through the air!"

The audience let out exclamations of awe as the beautiful Finneon put on a supreme spectacle.

"There in the distance, approaching her fast,

was a shadowy figure atop of Lapras!"

"Who do you think is playing the Prince this time?" whispered Tracey.

"Probably Lily," whispered May back. "She was rehearsing last time."

"But I saw Violet rehearsing the Prince!" said Max suddenly. Tracey gave them a quick glance.

"Were you guys spying on the rehearsals?"

"No!" they whispered back quickly. "Let's just see."

The audience watched, enthralled as the Lapras approached.

"The Princess sat up, completely alert,

Could it be her Prince had finally returned?"

The group leaned forward in anxious wait as the figure grew clearer. Suddenly Misty gasped and her eyes grew wide. The handsome Prince suddenly came into full view and the audience erupted in gasps of their own.

"The Princess gasped as she saw, it was indeed he!

He leapt of the Lapras and onto the rock in the middle of the sea."

The group sat in shock at the figure they observed. He stood upright and clearly on the rock and he ran a hand through his brown hair and smiled down at Misty.

"The Prince had returned to his true love of the deep,

The Princess took his hand as though she might weep."

The acting for Misty was over. She was in total shock as Gary Oak, complete with the Prince costume, stood before her and she shakily took his hand as happy tears filled her eyes.

"I knew you would come! My wish has come true!" her voice said over the speaker.

"Of course my dear, I could never leave you." said Gary's voice over. That was another shock. When did he manage to get that recorded without any suspicion? Ash smirked as he looked at the confused faces of Lily and Violet in the water. They knew that was supposed to be Daisy's voice! 

"And the Princess, the Prince in his strong arms a-swept,

And kissed her so sweetly when their lips first met."

"AW...!" rang out around the stadium as Gary pulled Misty to him and kissed her. Jessie and James were openly weeping on each other and Brock and Tracey high five-d, it seemed their suspicions were confirmed. The Joy's, Delia, May and Dawn all dabbed their eyes as Gary and Misty parted and smiled at each other while the Pokemon all danced joyfully around them.

Violet and Lily rounded the story off with two final lines.

"And the Prince and the Princess lived happily ever after as the Lapras gave a call,"

"So we bid you goodnight, and Merry Christmas to all!"

The audience erupted in cheers and applause and as Daisy, Lily and Violet joined the happy pair and the Pokemon rose to the surface, they received a standing ovation. The performers smiled and waved before leaving for backstage.

As the rest of the audience left the arena, happily chattering, and some still crying, about the show, the gang all made their way backstage. When they got there, Daisy, Lily and Violet were busy interrogating Gary and Misty, out of costume, was standing to the side and watching the scene with amusement.

"Well you're lucky the costume fit!" said Daisy

"Oh my gosh! So you're the sender?" asked Violet.

"Like, how did you end up on the recording?" Lily demanded in confusion.

"That would be my doing," said Ash as they arrived. They all stared at him and he grinned.

"Oh come on! I'm not as clueless as you guys think. I ran into Gary on the way over here and he told me what he was doing and so I offered to help out and managed to switch the tapes after I arrived!"

"Pika!" added Pikachu happily.

"Hey!" said Jessie as they walked in. "If you knew the plot then why did you still attack us?" she growled.

"Oh come on, he didn't give me details!" Ash defended. "How was I supposed to know you guys ran a delivery service?"

"So you knew all along and you didn't tell us?" Brock exclaimed and they all laughed.

Delia, meanwhile, had walked over to Gary and gave him a hug. "I'm glad it all worked out just the way you wanted," she said with a smile.

The rest of them stared. "Mrs Ketchum! You knew too?" cried Tracey.

Delia laughed. "Of course! Gary needed a woman's words of wisdom on this whole idea."

"Sorry Gramps," said Gary with a grin. "I would have asked you for help but you're not the best at keeping secrets."

The Professor laughed at his grandson. "Well Gary, this was some charade you pulled of."

Max was staring up at Gary with a contemplative look on his face before a light bulb went on in his head. "Hey!" he exclaimed suddenly. "You're the man we bumped into on the way over here!"

Gary laughed. "Yeah, sorry about that. I was kind of eavesdropping on your conversation." he said with a sheepish smile.

Dawn and May sighed. "You're so romantic..." said May.

"And you really are just like a Prince!" said Dawn. Gary smiled and was about to add something else when Misty suddenly stepped forward.

"Hey!" she yelled to get them all to back off. Her expression looked serious as she walked up to Gary.

"So this is why you suddenly disappeared on me?" she asked him quietly. He smiled softly and took her hands.

"I don't know how and I don't know for how long," he began. "But it suddenly it me after your last visit that I love you and I had to do something about it."

Misty looked up at him and smiled as her sisters began to cry behind her. "Well this experience sure was something!" she said with a wink. "Well I do have one more Christmas wish," she added, taking a step closer.

"Oh yeah? What's that?"

Misty grinned. "Kiss me."

Gary laughed. "Merry Christmas Misty." he said and fulfilled with his Princesses Christmas wish.

The End.

**AN : So there we have it, the end! I sincerely apologise for getting this out so late, had a bit of an accident with a string of lights, a shoe and a wall... Anyway, I hope you all enjoyed this chapter! It certainly was fun to write and I'm sorry again for the delay. I hope you Pokeshippers aren't terribly disappointed and still enjoyed the story nonetheless. It's been great fun writing this, let me know how you found the ending and I hope all you readers had a fantastic Christmas and I wish you all a very Happy New Year =D!**

**~DragonQuillZ**


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